Zoox expanded its Las Vegas robotaxi service beyond the Strip into Downtown and the Arts District on Thursday, and said it is putting its redesigned vehicle into service and extending its operating hours in the city.
The Amazon-owned company now runs rides from 6 a.m. to 3 a.m., seven days a week. Its “next evolution” robotaxi, unveiled in June with a lighter interior and more comfortable seating, “has now made its debut in Las Vegas,” Zoox said in a post on its website.
“We’ll be rolling out our next-gen robotaxi, along with extended service hours,” the company said on X.
Zoox did not say how many vehicles serve the larger area or which Downtown and Arts District destinations were added.
The expansion comes days before Formula 1 race week in Las Vegas, and in the month Zoox is due to start offering rides on Uber‘s app in the city.
Las Vegas Additions
Zoox opened its service to the public on and around the Strip on September 10, 2025, the first fully driverless ride-hailing service in a purpose-built robotaxi, according to the company. The vehicle has no steering wheel or pedals and seats four passengers facing each other.
In March, it said it had more than doubled its Las Vegas pickup and drop-off locations, adding the Las Vegas Convention Center and most of the Strip’s major hotels. It also began limited service to events at Sphere and T-Mobile Arena through partnerships with both venues.
Riders now have dedicated pickup spots at partner venues including Sphere, T-Mobile Arena, Resorts World and AREA15. At other destinations, the robotaxis use the designated rideshare areas, the company said.
Paid rides began last August, ending nearly a year of free service in the city. F
ares combine a base charge with distance and time, are shown before booking and do not change if the vehicle takes a different route. Zoox has said it wants prices to be competitive with the “comfort” tiers of conventional ride-hailing services.
In September, Zoox added Harry Reid International Airport, where its pickup points sit near baggage claim at Terminals 1 and 3. Uber and Lyft passengers are picked up on a garage level a five- to ten-minute walk away, according to TechCrunch.
The paid service followed a July decision by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that granted Zoox the first commercial exemption for a vehicle without traditional human controls. It covers up to 2,500 vehicles in any 12-month period, runs through July 31, 2028, and exempts Zoox from eight federal motor vehicle safety standards, including windshield defrosting and light vehicle braking.
Redesigned Robotaxi
Zoox unveiled the redesigned vehicle in June as its production-intent version, the design it plans to build at scale at its plant in Hayward, California. The plant can make up to 100 robotaxis a week, subject to regulatory approval, the company said at the time.
The update brought aloe-green seats with more padding, stone-grey flooring and trim, larger cupholders, a brighter touchscreen and two-way audio at the doors. Zoox said the changes drew on feedback from about half a million riders.
Chris Stoffel, Director of Robot Industrial Design and Studio Engineering, said the aim is that “riders can relax and enjoy the space as they are transported throughout the city.”
Uber Launch and Fleet Size
“We are excited for Zoox to launch on Uber in Las Vegas later this month,” Uber Chief Executive Officer Dara Khosrowshahi said on the company’s third-quarter earnings call on November 4.
The two companies announced the deal in March, saying Zoox would be on the Uber app in Las Vegas “this summer,” with Los Angeles to follow next year. It was Zoox’s first agreement with a third-party ride-hailing platform.
The size of the fleet remains unclear. Robotaxi Tracker counted 62 Zoox robotaxis in service in Las Vegas and the San Francisco Bay Area on November 5, up from 57 three months earlier. Chief Executive Officer Aicha Evans said at The Wall Street Journal‘s Tech Live event that Zoox operates about 150 robotaxis across several U.S. cities, Reuters reported. The tracker counts only vehicles its users have spotted.
In July, Zoox recalled software on 105 robotaxis after one drove into heavy smoke at an active fire scene in Las Vegas on June 20.
Beyond Las Vegas
In San Francisco, Zoox runs free rides for members of its Zoox Explorers early-rider program. It said in March it would quadruple its service area there to cover much of the city’s eastern half, including the Marina, North Beach, Chinatown, Pacific Heights and the Embarcadero. It still needs a California permit before it can charge passengers.
Its purpose-built robotaxis began carrying employees in Austin and Miami in March, about two years after Zoox started testing in both cities with retrofitted vehicles. Zoox has not announced a public launch date for either city.
Zoox said on September 1 it had begun mapping Houston and San Diego with human-driven test vehicles, bringing its presence to 12 U.S. locations. Evans has also said Zoox plans to send data-collection vehicles to London, other European Union cities, South Korea and Japan, without giving a timeline.
The company said in July it had carried more than half a million riders, with another half million on its waitlist.
Race Week
Zoox signed a multi-year partnership with the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix on November 5, becoming its “Event and Official Autonomous Ride Hail Partner.” It plans to carry racegoers to and from the Grand Prix Plaza from 2027, with a dedicated pickup and drop-off zone.
This year’s deal covers marketing. Zoox branding will appear on the circuit and on the Sphere’s exterior, and the company will present the Atlassian Williams F1 Team fan zone at New York-New York from November 16 to 21. The race runs from November 19 to 21.
The company first tested in Las Vegas in 2019, a year before Amazon bought it.
