The Amazon-owned autonomous vehicle company said customers will be able to hail rides to the airport beginning Thursday. The move follows a rapid series of steps since federal regulators cleared Zoox to operate and charge for rides, and it unlocks a critical ride-hailing destination that tends to drive demand.
Zoox spent more than a decade building a custom robotaxi without a steering wheel or pedals. The vehicle has offered rides in Las Vegas for around a year, but the company only began operating as a commercial service after regulators in August granted a temporary exemption from eight federal motor vehicle standards. The exemption runs for two years and allows Zoox to deploy up to 2,500 vehicles, and it covers items such as windshield defrosting and light vehicle braking systems.
Since the exemption, Zoox began charging for rides on August 10, published a safety framework, and announced plans to test its self-driving fleet in San Diego and Houston, steps that signal an operational ramp up.
The airport expansion gives Zoox a pickup advantage over traditional ride-hail apps. Zoox said its robotaxi will collect and drop off riders at both airport terminals near baggage claim, while Uber and Lyft drop passengers at the terminal curb but require pickups from an upper floor of a nearby parking garage, a five- to ten-minute walk from baggage claim.
Zoox currently appears to be the only robotaxi operator servicing the Las Vegas airport, but competition is coming. Last month Tesla, Uber and Waymo received permits from the Nevada Transportation Authority to run commercial robotaxi services in Clark County. Those permits would allow as many as 8,000 robotaxis to deploy across the county over the next 12 months, setting the stage for a crowded market as Zoox scales.
The airport addition is both a tactical advantage for Zoox in capturing incoming riders and a test of how quickly it can turn regulatory clearance into regular, paid service amid growing local competition.
