The Robot Report

  • Home
  • News
  • Technologies
    • Batteries / Power Supplies
    • Cameras / Imaging / Vision
    • Controllers
    • End Effectors
    • Microprocessors / SoCs
    • Motion Control
    • Sensors
    • Soft Robotics
    • Software / Simulation
  • Development
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Human Robot Interaction / Haptics
    • Mobility / Navigation
    • Research
  • Robots
    • AGVs
    • AMRs
    • Consumer
    • Collaborative Robots
    • Drones
    • Exoskeletons
    • Industrial
    • Self-Driving Vehicles
    • Unmanned Maritime Systems
  • Markets
    • Agriculture
    • Healthcare
    • Logistics
    • Manufacturing
    • Mining
    • Security
  • Financial
    • Investments
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Earnings
  • Resources
    • Careers
    • COVID-19
    • Digital Issues
    • Publications
      • Collaborative Robotics Trends
      • Robotics Business Review
    • RBR50 Winners 2022
    • Search Robotics Database
    • Videos
    • Webinars / Digital Events
  • Events
    • RoboBusiness
    • Robotics Summit & Expo
    • Healthcare Robotics Engineering Forum
    • DeviceTalks
    • R&D 100
    • Robotics Weeks
  • Podcast
    • Episodes
    • Leave a voicemail

Zoox raises $200M more for robotaxi development, testing in Las Vegas

By Eugene Demaitre | October 22, 2019

Zoox Inc. today announced that it has signed a $200 million convertible note that will be part of a Series C round. Unlike other companies developing autonomous vehicles, Zoox is working on both the hardware and software for robotic taxicabs.

The Foster City, Calif.-based company was founded in 2014 by Tim Kentley-Klay and Jesse Levinson. It fired Kentley-Klay in August 2018, and Aicha Evans, former chief strategy officer at Intel Corp., became CEO in January.

Zoox said on its site that it is designing “a symmetrical, bidirectional, zero-emissions vehicle from the ground up to solve the unique challenges of autonomous mobility.” The company is working on robotaxis without controls for human drivers such as steering wheels.

“We want to redesign, recycle and rethink the industry,” Evans said. While its approach may differ, the company needs funding to keep up with competitors such as Cruise, which raised $1.15 billion in May, and Argo AI, which signed a $2.6 billion deal with Volkswagen in July.

Largest Autonomous Vehicle Investments of 2019

CompanyAmt. ($M)Lead InvestorDate
Argo AI2600Volkswagen AG7/11
Cruise1150Honda Motor Corp.5/7
Uber ATG1000Softbank Vision Fund4/18
Nuro.ai940Softbank Vision Fund2/11
Aurora Innovation600Amazon6/12
Weltmeister Motor450Baidu3/11
Xpeng Motors400Xiaomi Corp.11/15
TuSimple215SINA9/17
Zoox200Convertible Note10/22
PlusAI2008/21
Innoviz Technologies170China Merchants Capital3/26

On the software side, Zoox uses simulation to train its vehicles to handle situations such as yellow left-turn signals. It said it plans to test and offer its self-driving taxi service next year.

The company had previously raised a total of $790 million, including a Series B round worth $465 million in July 2018, according to Crunchbase. Existing and new investors participated in the latest funding.

Zoox to launch in Las Vegas

In addition to trials in the San Francisco Bay Area, Zoox said that it plans to expand testing in Las Vegas as a target market for its on-demand mobility service.

Zoox las vegas

Zoox plans to test robotaxis in Las Vegas. Source: Zoox

Zoox said that Las Vegas offers “an opportunity to extend learning in a second dense urban environment; one that has diverse and unique use cases compared to driving in San Francisco,” reported The Verge. “For example, Las Vegas provides interesting scenarios for our vehicles to encounter, like reversible lanes, complex pick-up and drop-off zones, high temperatures, and more night-time activity.”

Other autonomous vehicle companies are testing in Nevada, including Aptiv, Faraday Future, Kia Motors, and Lyft. Zoox ranked third, behind only Waymo and Cruise, in a report on “disengagements” last year in California. Disengagements are incidents in which the safety driver has to take over control of a test vehicle.

Editor’s note: Zoox’s Levinson participated in “Look Who’s Driving,” a NOVA episode on self-driving cars that will air tomorrow night on PBS. The Robot Report spoke with a producer and will post an article on the concerns around autonomous driving.

About The Author

Eugene Demaitre

Eugene Demaitre was senior editor of The Robot Report from 2019-2020. Prior to working at WTWH Media, he was an editor at BNA (now part of Bloomberg), Computerworld, TechTarget, and Robotics Business Review. Demaitre has participated in robotics webcasts and conferences worldwide. He has a master's from the George Washington University and lives in the Boston area.

Tell Us What You Think! Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Related Articles Read More >

waymo
UN allows autonomous vehicles to drive up to 130 km/h
cruise robotaxis in San Francisco
Cruise hits milestone by charging for robotaxis rides in SF
csail simulation
MIT CSAIL releases open-source simulator for autonomous vehicles
The Cruise car in San Francisco
Nvidia patent helps autonomous cars detect emergency vehicles

2021 Robotics Handbook

The Robot Report Listing Database

Latest Robotics News

Robot Report Podcast

Brian Gerkey from Open Robotics discusses the development of ROS
See More >

Sponsored Content

  • Magnetic encoders support the stabilization control of a self-balancing two-wheeled robotic vehicle
  • How to best choose your AGV’s Wheel Drive provider
  • Meet Trey, the autonomous trailer (un)loading forklift
  • Kinova Robotics launches Link 6, the first Canadian industrial collaborative robot
  • Torque sensors help make human/robot collaborations safer for workers

RBR50 Innovation Awards

Leave us a voicemail

The Robot Report
  • Mobile Robot Guide
  • Collaborative Robotics Trends
  • Field Robotics Forum
  • Healthcare Robotics Engineering Forum
  • RoboBusiness Event
  • Robotics Business Review
  • Robotics Summit & Expo
  • About The Robot Report
  • Subscribe
  • Advertising
  • Contact Us

Copyright © 2022 WTWH Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of WTWH Media
Privacy Policy | Advertising | About Us

Search The Robot Report

  • Home
  • News
  • Technologies
    • Batteries / Power Supplies
    • Cameras / Imaging / Vision
    • Controllers
    • End Effectors
    • Microprocessors / SoCs
    • Motion Control
    • Sensors
    • Soft Robotics
    • Software / Simulation
  • Development
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Human Robot Interaction / Haptics
    • Mobility / Navigation
    • Research
  • Robots
    • AGVs
    • AMRs
    • Consumer
    • Collaborative Robots
    • Drones
    • Exoskeletons
    • Industrial
    • Self-Driving Vehicles
    • Unmanned Maritime Systems
  • Markets
    • Agriculture
    • Healthcare
    • Logistics
    • Manufacturing
    • Mining
    • Security
  • Financial
    • Investments
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Earnings
  • Resources
    • Careers
    • COVID-19
    • Digital Issues
    • Publications
      • Collaborative Robotics Trends
      • Robotics Business Review
    • RBR50 Winners 2022
    • Search Robotics Database
    • Videos
    • Webinars / Digital Events
  • Events
    • RoboBusiness
    • Robotics Summit & Expo
    • Healthcare Robotics Engineering Forum
    • DeviceTalks
    • R&D 100
    • Robotics Weeks
  • Podcast
    • Episodes
    • Leave a voicemail