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Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

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Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#161

Post by JumpCrisscross »

rurp wrote: post #90
_fat_santa wrote: post #60

I was just in Vegas and saw these rolling around. They seem to have a mix of robotaxis (like the ones pictured) and decked out Toyota Highlanders that look like Waymos but not as well "packaged", though in my personal experience I saw far more of the Highlanders than the custom robotaxis and all of them seemed to have a driver behind the wheel. Vegas is an interesting place to launch IMO (and I believe they only oper…

Certain road hazards are a much bigger issue on the strip than most roads. Pedestrians frequently walk into traffic, and cars regularly stop illegally and swerve in front of other vehicles. It looks like the initial service area is tiny but if Zoox handles those cases well it's a solid technical achievement and bodes well for expansion.

> Pedestrians frequently walk into traffic, and cars regularly stop illegally and swerve in front of other vehicles

Have you been to San Francisco or LA?

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#162

Post by sand500 »

ARandumGuy wrote: post #25
barbazoo wrote: post #2

It’s a cute gimmick for tourists but it won’t contribute to public transportation.

The fact that there isn't a rail line from the airport to the strip is wild. It would simplify travel for tourists dramatically, and get a lot of hotel shuttles and taxis off the street. There's a reason why even cities with bad public transit usually have a line to the airport, and it's wild that Las Vegas doesn't have one.

I agree it's stupid. Relevant video on this:

https://youtu.be/-DAfmFdLIjo?si=wg8inSg84VvXFFLx

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#163

Post by shermantanktop »

jerlam wrote: post #133
jewel wrote: post #52

The front-to-back symmetry is interesting. It may cause some confusion for other drivers, in some limited circumstances, when they can't tell which way the vehicle is facing. It appears, based on my study of the footage on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIRW8bfy4kE , that it could possibly switch which side is the front and the back by just changing the color of the lights. With RGB LEDs that would be pretty easy to…

I wonder if there are barf bags for the backwards-facing passengers.

I routinely had 8+h drives in the rear-facing seat of my family's circa 1970 Plymouth Satellite station wagon growing up. Completely unsafe, and very boring, but I don't recall barfing.

My sister and I would pass the time folding up a piece of paper and each of us got to draw part of a person without seeing what the other had drawn. Sort of like visual madlibs.

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#164

Post by SpaceNoodled »

jerlam wrote: post #131

I poked around on their site and read the press releases; Zoox seems to be limited to only pickups and dropoffs at a few set locations. > Simply open the Zoox app to take a ride from several destinations on and around the Strip. This puts it dramatically behind Waymo where I can walk out on any block in the coverage area and tell it to take me to any other block in the coverage area, not to mention Uber and Lyft. I'm…

The main issue in this case is that LV strictly dictates rideshare pickup/dropoff locations on the strip.

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#165

Post by shermantanktop »

jerlam wrote: post #131

I poked around on their site and read the press releases; Zoox seems to be limited to only pickups and dropoffs at a few set locations. > Simply open the Zoox app to take a ride from several destinations on and around the Strip. This puts it dramatically behind Waymo where I can walk out on any block in the coverage area and tell it to take me to any other block in the coverage area, not to mention Uber and Lyft. I'm…

A self-driving individual shuttle with preset stops that can integrate into existing roadways is a huge step forward and would be very useful in many urban locations.

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#166

Post by SpaceNoodled »

mandeepj wrote: post #73
oooyay wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Zoox is funded by Amazon and is built from the ground up to be a robotaxi fleet with a custom car. There is no steering wheel afaik. Announcement: https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/innovation/zoox-headquarter...

> Zoox is funded by Amazon Amazon owns it, not just funded them. > There is no steering wheel afaik Maybe the control is in a remote centre then

It's a robot. It's driving itself, not being driven by a human.

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#167

Post by SpaceNoodled »

wedn3sday wrote: post #143
dingnuts wrote: post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

no the bet is lost on every count 1 it's not fully autonomous, there's a remote operator 2 not a wide enough service area as defined in the bet 3 it's a pilot program, also excluded in the bet 4 it's also a year late and the bet is very much still lost lol but we're going to have self driving cars by 2015 guys!

Is the remote operator actually driving under normal conditions, or do they just step in during an exigent circumstance?

The latter.

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#168

Post by paulnpace »

octernion wrote: post #153
paulnpace wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> oh the humanity, maybe on the order of a few minutes. that changes nothing. we should be inconveniencing human drivers more, if anything. > that you feel obligated to use words like "sophistry" tells me everything i need to know about you. You are evaluating one traffic light in a long series of traffic lights. At this moment, the grocery store is 2.8 miles and 17 minutes from my house. This is a typical short trip…

hmm all of my assumptions have been wildly correct and you are just further confirming it. good stuff my dude. sorry you choose a place like that to live. sounds miserable. i'll be sure to wave at the other drivers next time i'm in town in a zoox or waymo and then go back to doing literally anything else than driving.

> hmm all of my assumptions have been wildly correct and you are just further confirming it. good stuff my dude. sorry you choose a place like that to live. sounds miserable.

> i'll be sure to wave at the other drivers next time i'm in town in a zoox or waymo and then go back to doing literally anything else than driving.

You will remain free to be self-righteous.

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#169

Post by chpatrick »

bighead1 wrote: post #30
giancarlostoro wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How so? You realize there are people who cannot legally drive for whom a robotaxi is a life changing achievement?

Why wouldn't they just take a taxi driven by a human? Or a bus (also driven by a human)?

Why wouldn't they just take a carriage pulled by a horse?

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#170

Post by decimalenough »

Alive-in-2025 wrote: post #154
phkahler wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> though in my personal experience I saw far more of the Highlanders than the custom robotaxis and all of them seemed to have a driver behind the wheel. The robotaxis have a steering wheel? I thought they had campfire seating with 2 backward facing seats.

If by robotaxi you mean the vehicles used in the tesla test in Austin and now in the bay area, they are just regular model y with an emergency "stop so you don't kill me button" on the right side. They have a special version of the software that is unreleased. The current model Y's / "robotaxi" have all the regular hardware, including pedals and steering wheel and sensors. If you search, you can even find cases durin…

It looks like this, and it launched to the public today in Vegas, that's why this is news.

https://zoox.com/know-your-ride

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