Amazon’s Zoox expands its robotaxi service to Las Vegas airport

Zoox isn’t wasting any time now that it’s allowed to operate and charge for rides in its custom-built robotaxi.

The company has extended its commercial robotaxi service in Las Vegas to include rides to and from Harry Reid International Airport. Customers will be able to hail rides to the airport beginning Thursday, according to Zoox.

The expansion, which unlocks a critical ride-hailing destination, builds on a series of recent wins for the Amazon-owned autonomous vehicle technology company. Silicon Valley-based Zoox spent more than a decade developing its self-driving system and custom robotaxi that lacks traditional controls like a steering wheel and pedals.

While it has made progress, even providing rides to customers in Las Vegas for a year, it wasn’t able to operate as a true commercial robotaxi service. That changed in August after federal safety regulators gave Zoox a temporary exemption from certain motor vehicle safety standards.

The commercial exemption, which lasts two years and allows Zoox to deploy up to 2,500 vehicles, spans eight federal motor vehicle standards, including windshield defrosting and light vehicle braking systems. The exemption has kicked Zoox’s business expansion into drive.

The company started charging for rides on August 10, said it would begin testing its self-driving vehicles in San Diego and Houston, and released its safety framework — all actions that point to a company ramping up operations.

The company’s expansion to the Las Vegas airport appears to give it a bit of an edge over traditional ride-hailing companies Uber and Lyft, at least when it comes to grabbing a ride from the airport into the city. According to Zoox, its robotaxi will pick up and drop off riders at both airport terminals near baggage claim.

While Uber and Lyft can drop passengers off at the curb at the terminal, the pick up location is about a five- to ten-minute walk from baggage claim on the upper floor of a nearby parking garage. Zoox is the only robotaxi company operating a service to the Las Vegas airport, but more competition is coming.

The city has served as a testing ground for several autonomous vehicle companies over the years, and is now expected to be teeming with commercial robotaxi operators in the next year. Tesla, Uber and Waymo all received permits last month from the Nevada Transportation Authority to operate commercial robotaxi services in Clark County, home to Las Vegas.

Uber plans to operate robotaxis through partnerships with Hyundai subsidiary Motional, and Zoox. Together, these permits would allow the deployment of up to 8,000 robotaxis across the county over the next 12 months.