Home / Technology / Zoox Vehicles Granted Exemption from Federal Safety Rules
Zoox Vehicles Granted Exemption from Federal Safety Rules
6 Aug
Summary
- NHTSA certifies Zoox self-driving vehicles for demonstration use
- Zoox granted exemption from some federal safety requirements
- Zoox recalled 270 vehicles after a crash in Las Vegas
On August 6, 2025, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced that it has certified Amazon.com's self-driving unit Zoox for demonstration use, closing a probe into whether the vehicles had complied with federal requirements.
Earlier this year, NHTSA began investigating Zoox's self-driving vehicles, which lack traditional driving controls, to ensure they met federal safety standards. In June, Zoox applied for an exemption from some requirements, and NHTSA granted it, allowing the company's purpose-built vehicles to operate on public roads in the United States.
This development comes after Zoox agreed to recall 270 driverless vehicles in May 2025 following an incident in Las Vegas, where an unoccupied Zoox robotaxi was involved in a crash with a passenger car. The company's Automated Driving Systems were found to have a software glitch that could lead to inaccurate predictions in certain driving scenarios, potentially causing a collision.
Zoox paused operations for several days to review the safety of its vehicles and developed a software update to address the issue. In April 2025, NHTSA had also closed a separate probe into 258 Zoox vehicles over a braking problem, after the company issued a recall to update the software.
Despite these challenges, Zoox's self-driving vehicles have now been granted the necessary approvals to resume public demonstrations, marking a significant milestone in the company's efforts to bring its autonomous technology to the market.
