HOUSTON — Amazon-owned Zoox will begin testing autonomous vehicles in Houston later this month, using modified Toyota Highlander SUVs to map city streets and evaluate its self-driving technology before deploying its purpose-built robotaxis.
Zoox announced Houston as one of two new U.S. markets, alongside San Diego, expanding its operations to 12 locations nationwide. The company calls Houston its “most sprawling market to date” and plans to test vehicles in downtown, Rice Village, the Texas Medical Center, the Galleria area, Memorial Park, Midtown and the Hyde Park area of Montrose.
The initial test fleet will have safety drivers behind the wheel as Zoox manually maps Houston roads and collects information about road layouts, traffic signals and driving conditions. The company will then move to autonomous testing in mapped areas.
Zoox said Houston will provide a demanding environment for its technology because of the city’s service-road networks, unusual merging patterns, severe heat, heavy rain and urban flooding.
The company does not plan to immediately offer public robotaxi rides in Houston. After testing, Zoox plans to introduce its boxy, carriage-style autonomous vehicles, initially serving employees, their families and friends.
Zoox already operates in Austin and Dallas. The company launched in Austin in 2024 and expanded to Dallas earlier this year. Zoox has offered free public rides in Austin as part of its testing program but has not announced a public-service launch date for Houston.
Texas has 44 registered Zoox autonomous vehicles, including 39 Toyota Highlander SUVs and five purpose-built robotaxis, according to the Texas Autonomous Vehicle Fleet Tracker.
The Houston expansion adds Zoox to a growing group of companies testing autonomous vehicles in the city, including Waymo, Uber, Nuro and Tesla.
