Amazon takes over robot cart developer Zoox

Amazon takes over robot cart developer Zoox

NewYork, June 30, 2020

Amazon enters the self-propelled car business with the acquisition of Zoox. The online retailer had already invested in Zoox’s competitor Aurora last year. Amazon and Zoox announced a purchase agreement on Friday, 26 June 2020, without giving detailed information on the financial framework. According to US media reports, Amazon will pay over one billion dollars.
Zoox is one of many start-ups working on robotic cart technology. The goal of the company, founded in 2014, is to build a fleet of robot taxis. The company’s test vehicles are on the road in San Francisco with safety drivers on board. According to media reports, Zoox was valued at a total of 3.2 billion dollars in the last financing round.
Amazon is thus one of several tech giants betting on a future with autonomous cars. Google, for example, has distinguished itself as a pioneer of the movement by putting the car industry under pressure with its robot car tests since 2009. Apple is also working on software for autonomous driving and is sending its test vehicles out onto the streets of Silicon Valley.