Amazon’s Zoox Issues Second Software Recall This Month After San Francisco Crash

Amazon.com’s self-driving unit Zoox has issued a second software recall this month to improve how its vehicles track nearby pedestrians and prevent movement when someone is close, following a crash in San Francisco earlier this month.

The recall covers 270 vehicles equipped with its Automated Driving Systems software, which had versions released prior to May 21, Zoox said in a report with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Thursday. Zoox has updated the software.

On May 8, an unoccupied Zoox robotaxi was struck by an electric scooter while turning at low speed at a San Francisco intersection, the company said last week.

The rider sustained minor injuries and fell next to the vehicle, which continued turning and then stopped without making further contact, it said.

Earlier this month, Zoox had issued a software recall for 270 driverless vehicles after an unoccupied robotaxi was involved in an April 8 crash with a passenger car in Las Vegas.

In April, NHTSA closed a probe into 258 Zoox vehicles over a braking issue after the company issued a recall to update their software.

(Reporting by Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)