Amazon’s self-driving unit Zoox has issued a second software update to enhance its vehicles’ ability to track nearby pedestrians and prevent movement when someone is close, following a recent crash in San Francisco.
The update addresses a rare issue where the vehicle could resume travel without detecting nearby pedestrians after stopping or moving slowly.
The company temporarily suspended on-road operations after the May 8 incident, when a person on an electric scooter collided at low speed with an unoccupied Zoox robotaxi at a San Francisco intersection. The rider sustained minor injuries, and the vehicle moved briefly before stopping without further contact.
After conducting a review, implementing the software update, and completing simulation testing, Zoox resumed operations last week.
The recall covers 270 vehicles equipped with Zoox’s self-driving software, as reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on Thursday. These vehicles remain company-owned and are not yet available for public sale.
Zoox has been testing its autonomous vehicles on public roads since 2023, operating in California, Nevada, Florida, Texas, and several major cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Seattle, Austin, and Miami. Earlier this month, Zoox also recalled 270 vehicles following an April 8 crash involving an unoccupied robotaxi and a passenger car in Las Vegas.
In a separate April investigation, NHTSA closed a probe into 258 Zoox vehicles related to a braking issue after the company issued a prior software update.
