Amazon’s Zoox robotaxi unit issues software recall after recent Las Vegas crash

Amazon’s Zoox issued a software recall for 270 of its robotaxis after a crash in Las Vegas last month, the company said Tuesday.

The recall surrounds a defect with the vehicle’s automated driving system that could cause it to inaccurately predict the movement of another car, increasing “the risk of a crash,” according to a report submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Zoox submitted the recall after an April 8 incident in Las Vegas where an unoccupied Zoox robotaxi collided with a passenger vehicle, the NHTSA report states. There were no injuries in the crash and only minor damage occurred to both vehicles.

“After analysis and rigorous testing, Zoox identified the root cause,” the company said in a blog post. “We issued a software update that was implemented across all Zoox vehicles. All Zoox vehicles on the road today, including our purpose-built robotaxi and test fleet, have the updated software.”

Zoox paused all driverless vehicle operations while it reviewed the incident. It’s since resumed operations after rolling out the software update.

Amazon acquired Zoox in 2020 for over $1 billion, announcing at the time that the deal would help bring the self-driving technology company’s “vision for autonomous ride-hailing to reality.” However, Amazon has fallen far behind Alphabet’s Waymo, which has robotaxi services operating in multiple U.S. markets. Tesla has also announced plans to launch a robotaxi offering in Austin in June, though the company has missed many prior target dates for releasing its technology.

Zoox has been testing its robotaxis in Las Vegas, Nevada, and Foster City, California. Last month, Zoox began testing a small fleet of retrofitted vehicles in Los Angeles.

Last month, NHTSA closed a probe into two crashes involving Toyota Highlanders equipped with Zoox’s autonomous vehicle technology. The agency opened the probe last May after the vehicles braked suddenly and were rear-ended by motorcyclists, which led to minor injuries.