What It’s Really Like To Ride a Zoox Robotaxi in Las Vegas

Zoox is an Amazon-owned driverless robotaxi service. These autonomous vehicles are designed for riders, not drivers, so you won’t see an empty driver’s seat with a steering wheel, like you might with Waymo.

The service is currently testing free rides in Las Vegas and San Francisco, with plans to expand to Austin, Miami, Atlanta, and Los Angeles. Zoox has even begun testing rides from Harry Reid International Airport (LAS).

So what is it like to ride in one of these robotaxis? How do you hail one? Are they safe? And is Lady Gaga on the playlist? I hailed one for a trip from one end of the Las Vegas Strip to the other to see what the experience was like.

Where Does Zoox Go in Las Vegas?

Since launching in Las Vegas in 2025, Zoox vehicles have driven nearly 2 million miles and carried over 350,000 riders (Source: Zoox).

As of mid-May 2026, Zoox has expanded to 15 pickup and drop-off points (listed from north to south Strip): Fontainebleau, Resorts World, Las Vegas Convention Center West Hall, AREA15, Fashion Show Mall, Wynn, The Sphere, TopGolf, Bellagio, ARIA, New York-New York, MGM Grand, Excalibur, Luxor, and Mandalay Bay.

The current hours of operation are 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. daily.

What Is It Like To Ride Zoox in Las Vegas?

I wanted to test a Zoox ride from Resorts World Las Vegas, at the north end of the Strip, to Bellagio. The closest drop-off point at the time (late April 2026) was at New York-New York.

Similar to Uber or Lyft, you request a pickup via the Zoox app and receive an arrival time estimate for your vehicle. The times quoted for my trip to start were quite long — upward of 20 minutes. After waiting nearly 30 minutes for my first ride, I realized that I had never received a notification that my vehicle had already arrived and departed. The app canceled the ride when I didn’t get in.

I quickly requested a new ride and asked a Zoox desk staffer how I could have missed my first ride. She mentioned you really have to watch the app (and not be on another screen) because there is no notification when your vehicle arrives. After some back-and-forth, she shrugged and said, “This is why it’s free,” and advised me to leave my feedback in the app after the ride.

My second vehicle eventually showed up at the meeting point, and I was advised by the staffer that I had 3 minutes to get in. I noticed, while watching the pickup point, that many riders use this time to take selfies.

I unlocked the doors using the app. I was 100% taking this ride for the novelty, and first impressions delivered a cool experience from the get-go.

The interior accommodated 4 passengers seated in a carriage-style configuration, facing each other. The setup was unlike anything I expected, and the fiber-optic starry-sky ceiling was really neat.

Once seated, I had to buckle my seatbelt before the ride could start. (The vehicles have seat sensors, seatbelt switches, and an in-vehicle camera to ensure that all eligible seatbelts are engaged.) My next step was to use the touchscreen near my seat to start my ride.

I was able to control music for the ride from a playlist similar to Spotify, and I could also adjust the climate controls. I realized I could also charge my iPhone on the wireless charging pad (on each row of seats), right next to the cupholders.

The 3-mile drive took 18 minutes and utilized a side street off the Strip. As this was my first time in a driverless vehicle, I paid close attention to the speed (never over 40 miles an hour) and how the vehicle navigated turns and traffic. The experience felt remarkably smooth. At any time in the ride, I could use the touchscreen to reach live support, if needed.

After arriving at New York-New York, I exited the vehicle using the touchscreen.

I definitely felt like a minor celebrity exiting one of these vehicles, as its uniqueness captured a lot of attention.

Final Thoughts

Zoox is testing its robotaxis in Las Vegas and San Francisco for free, which is a great opportunity to try the service. For my late-night experience navigating the Strip, I was canceled on and had a longer wait than with traditional ride-hailing apps. I also couldn’t get to the exact spot I wanted, given where Zoox was operating at the time. But was it cool and fun? Absolutely. And for a group of 4, Zoox offers a much more comfortable, social experience.

The bigger question is what happens when Zoox eventually transitions to a paid service. Will rates be competitive with traditional ride-hailing services? Will Zoox always have specific drop-off and pickup points, or will it venture into custom A-to-B routing? The company is definitely one to keep an eye on.