Amazon's Zoox robotaxi unit is ramping up vehicle production at a new facility in Hayward, California.
Amazon 's Zoox has cleared a key regulatory hurdle, paving the way for demonstrations of its self-driving robotaxis.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Wednesday that it granted Zoox an exemption from some requirements, a first for U.S.-built vehicles under a recently expanded program.
"Transportation innovators can be confident in getting speedy review of their vehicles and, as appropriate, exemption from Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards," NHTSA Chief Counsel Peter Simshauser said in a release.
The company must remove all existing statements that its purpose-built vehicles meet all federal motor vehicle safety standards.
As part of the announcement, NHTSA said it's closing a probe opened in March 2023 into Zoox's self-certification that its robotaxi met federal safety standards.
"Through this new exemption process, we are excited to embark on this new path, put these discussions behind us, and move forward," Zoox said in a statement.
The Department of Transportation in April announced it would expand a program that aims to speed up the autonomous vehicle exemption process to include domestically produced vehicles. Previously, it was limited to imported AVs.