Amazon's self-driving car unit, Zoox, has announced a software recall for its driverless vehicle fleet of 270 units after an April 8th Las Vegas crash. The crash occurred between a riding Zoox robotaxi and a regular passenger car yet Zoox officials verified through Tuesday they received no injury reports.

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The Automated Driving Systems operating software of the company experienced a prediction failure in scenarios involving vehicles that approach perpendicular to the system at slow speeds before stopping. Zoox disclosed through acknowledgment its vehicles might sometimes fail to stop an imminent crash.

Zoox halted its entire operation after the crash to conduct an extensive safety examination. Software developers at the company introduced an application update which fixed the recently identified problem area.

Also Read | Zoox recalls robotaxis over unexpected braking issue following US investigation

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Zoox reported that in the Las Vegas incident their robotaxi began to decrease speed because the passenger car looked like it would move forward then turned right. The Zoox vehicle found complete stoppage from the passenger car resulting in the vehicle shifting to the shoulder lane. When the robotaxi attempted strong braking maneuvers it still succumbed to impact with the stationary passenger vehicle. Zoox maintains that speed conditions above 40 miles per hour activate this issue while vehicles move into range from perpendicular driveways.

The recall announcement arrives after a previous software recall in April based on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) investigation into braking problems in 258 Zoox vehicles. The initial probe started in May 2024 to investigate two rear-end mishaps that caused motorcycle drivers injuries during unexpected Zoox autonomous vehicle braking incidents.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration continues to investigate Zoox's 2022 robotaxi design self-certification process because it lacks conventional driving control elements. The latest mishap and result in product recalls demonstrate ongoing safety evaluations of emerging autonomous vehicle technology.