Zoox issues software recall after a robotaxi got confused by heavy smoke
Zoox has issued a software recall after one of its robotaxis struggled to navigate a smoke-filled emergency fire scene in June. Nobody was on board the...
Key points
- Zoox has issued a software recall after one of its robotaxis struggled to navigate a smoke-filled emergency fire scene in June.
- Nobody was on board the vehicle during the June incident, and Zoox told the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that it is not aware of injuries associated with the problem.
- Zoox’s recall comes just a week after NHTSA administrator Jonathan Morrison sent a letter to self-driving car companies warning them to stop interfering with first responders.
- NHTSA said in its report describing the recall that, on June 20, a Zoox robotaxi “encountered heavy smoke that obscured an active emergency fire scene that was not cordoned off with cones.” The Zoox vehicle “braked hard while attempting to steer away before coming to a stop.” A Zoox teleoperator was able to reverse the vehicle away from the scene, allowing first responders to place traffic cones.
What happened
Zoox has issued a software recall after one of its robotaxis struggled to navigate a smoke-filled emergency fire scene in June. Nobody was on board the vehicle during the June incident, and Zoox told the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that it is not aware of injuries associated with the problem. Zoox’s recall comes just a week after NHTSA administrator Jonathan Morrison sent a letter to self-driving car companies warning them to stop interfering with first responders. NHTSA said in its report describing the recall that, on June 20, a Zoox robotaxi “encountered heavy smoke that obscured an active emergency fire scene that was not cordoned off with cones.” The Zoox vehicle “braked hard while attempting to steer away before coming to a stop.” A Zoox teleoperator was able to reverse the vehicle away from the scene, allowing first responders to place traffic cones. The company said “this is the only event of this kind that Zoox has experienced,” and that through late June and early July, it had multiple conversations with the safety regulator about the “severity, frequency, and root causes.” Zoox decided to issue the recall on July 7, one day before Morrison’...