Amazon's self-driving subsidiary Zoox announced plans to begin testing autonomous vehicles in Dallas and Phoenix. Initially, the company will deploy a small fleet of modified Toyota Highlander SUVs equipped with human safety drivers to map the areas. Following this initial phase, Zoox will introduce its distinctive "toaster-shaped" autonomous taxi for further testing.

Compared to the dense urban environments of previous test locations, Dallas and Phoenix will allow Zoox to challenge its technology with more diverse weather conditions and more expansive road layouts. In a blog post, Zoox stated that Phoenix offers an opportunity to test sensor and battery performance in high-temperature, dusty highway conditions. Dallas provides a valuable testing ground for optimizing the AI system amidst variable weather and complex road networks.

Zoox reported that since launching public services in Las Vegas and San Francisco, it has served over 300,000 passengers. This expansion brings Zoox's operational footprint to 10 markets across the United States. Last November, Zoox began offering free rides in parts of San Francisco, just months after it first opened its autonomous taxi service to the public in Las Vegas. The company is also currently testing its self-driving technology in Seattle, Austin, Miami, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Washington, D.C.

Amazon acquired Zoox in 2020 for $1.3 billion and has since progressively expanded testing across the U.S. Zoox is also advancing the mass production of its autonomous taxis, having established a 220,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in the San Francisco Bay Area. The factory aims for an annual production capacity of 10,000 vehicles once fully operational.

This expansion places Zoox in direct competition with Alphabet's Waymo, the current leader in the U.S. autonomous vehicle market, and Tesla. Chinese autonomous taxi companies, including Baidu's Apollo, Pony.ai, and WeRide, are also continuing to grow their domestic market share.

In Monday's announcement, Zoox also revealed plans to open a new "Fusion Command Center" in Scottsdale, Arizona. This center will be responsible for providing remote guidance, mission control, and passenger support for the fleet. The company already operates similar command centers in Las Vegas and the San Francisco Bay Area.