Amazon-owned Zoox will send manually driven test vehicles onto Denver streets this winter

Amazon-owned robotaxi company Zoox is launching a small test fleet in Denver this winter to train its technology in rain and snow.

The company said the vehicles will be driven manually by trained operators, carry no passengers and will not offer public rides. Zoox is not expanding service operations to Denver at this time.

The test fleet will remain in Denver for a few months. Zoox said the goal is to improve how its vehicles handle different environments, including heavy rain and snow.

The vehicles now in Denver are being used for testing, mapping and software validation. Zoox said a roof module encases the hardware and sensor architecture to protect the technology during cold weather.

The training vehicles are equipped with steering wheels, pedals and a driver’s seat. Zoox operating vehicles do not have those controls. They have only an open carriage area with four seats facing each other.

Zoox said it is not offering an estimated launch date, the exact operating area or the number and makeup of vehicles in the Denver fleet. A spokesperson said the company is not expanding service operations to Denver at this time.

According to Zoox’s website, deploying a small testing fleet is the first phase before a company begins operations in a city. The second phase is autonomous driving with the testing fleet. The final phase is introducing robotaxis to the area.

Zoox vehicles have operated in Las Vegas and San Francisco since 2025. The company is opening access for early riders in Austin and Miami.

Waymo began accepting passengers in Denver weeks before Zoox vehicles arrived. Waymo started service on Sept. 1 after running a small pilot fleet in Denver for a year.

Waymo’s current operating fleet is around two dozen vehicles. The company said it will grow the fleet from dozens to hundreds as demand rises. Waymo said riders can sometimes wait more than 30 minutes for a driverless ride since it began opening to users last month.

Waymo’s local rollout has drawn criticism after several incidents. In recent months, Waymo vehicles have been confused by construction on Colfax Avenue and driven through the South Pearl Street Farmer’s Market during set-up. One Waymo was rear-ended after braking for a pedestrian in a crash that police said was caused by a human driver.

Some critics argue the technology is not ready for Denver streets, while others worry about the future of local rideshare drivers as autonomous vehicles expand.

Zoox is at least the third autonomous vehicle company to appear in Denver in the last year. Social media users have reported seeing Tesla Cybercabs driving in the city in recent weeks.

Waymo came to Denver to test winter driving, but the company ended up operating through Denver’s warmest, driest winter in decades. Early forecasts predict cooler, wetter conditions this season.