American companies Waymo and Zoox are simultaneously accelerating their expansion in the US robotaxi sector. Waymo now performs approximately 500,000 paid rides per week across 11 metropolitan areas, totaling roughly 26 million trips annually. Zoox received NHTSA approval on July 30 to deploy up to 2,500 steering-wheel-free robotaxis over two years, before launching paid service in Las Vegas on August 10 with approximately 65 vehicles. Nevada’s transportation authority issued multi-operator permits on August 20 allowing multiple robotaxi companies to operate simultaneously in the same market, with authorization for Waymo to operate up to 1,000 vehicles in Clark County. The removal of driver labor costs could enable lower fares and higher margins, even though neither company has yet disclosed whether their operations are profitable.
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