“The future of personal travel”

The electric vehicle market is growing slowly as Americans struggle to overtake gasoline-powered cars. And yet, some companies are already considering the next step: driverless electric vehicles.

This is the bet of the Californian company Zoox, which has chosen to develop a specific fleet of electric vehicles without steering wheels or pedals, Electrek reported in November.

“Designed so that AI can drive and humans can enjoy it,” Zoox, an Amazon subsidiary, writes on its website.

Electric vehicles can help improve air quality by reducing overall greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector, which in 2022 accounted for the largest share of U.S. emissions.

Zoox now hopes that the creation of autonomous electric robot taxis will reduce both pollution and traffic jams in dense cities.

After recording successful tests on public roads at speeds up to 45 mph in Foster City, California, and Las Vegas, Zoox is heading to San Francisco, where it has begun testing its robotaxis and offering driverless rides to local residents, according to Electrek.

“This marks our entry with robotaxi into our second commercial market,” Zoox CEO Aicha Evans said in a blog post published in November. “Since 2017, our test fleet has autonomously traveled the streets of San Francisco with a safety driver. Now that we have passed all critical safety measures, we are excited to begin testing our robotaxi in this wonderful city” , she added.

The company has not shared a timeline for the San Francisco market, but it intends to operate paid public transportation in Las Vegas in 2025.

Elon Musk’s Tesla, which Reuters reported faces regulatory and technical hurdles in its line of robot taxis, has some catching up to do.

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Part of the online community is already excited about the idea of ​​taking Zoox’s two-way taxis.

“(This) might just be the future of personal travel!” wrote TikToker Supercar Blondie (@supercarblondie) in the caption of their video showcasing the vehicle. “As you can see, you have four seats facing each other,” they explain. “It is inspired by a 19th century horse-drawn carriage,” they add. “Radar technology, Lidar, cameras, thermal imaging. It’s a Zoox.”

Commentators are not so convinced.

“Taxi driver just lost his job,” one TikTok user said. “So who will get the ticket?” » asked a second.

“Wait until the hackers decide to take you for a ride. It’s a computer on wheels,” pointed out another.

Others also reported that Waymo, Google’s former self-driving car project, already offered such a service in San Francisco.

If you want to try, Zoox is already recruiting its first riders.

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