The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has granted an exemption to Amazon’s autonomous vehicle unit, Zoox, allowing its self-driving cars to operate on public roads in the US.
This marks the first exemption for American-built vehicles under the NHTSA’s Automated Vehicle Exemption Program (AVEP), which was recently broadened to include domestic vehicles.
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The exemption comes as part of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s “Innovation Agenda”, which aims to safely expand the nation’s capabilities in the autonomous vehicle sector.
The AVEP was revised in April to promote US technology and safety, streamlining exemption procedures and enabling companies to operate vehicles that do not fully comply with existing regulations on roads in the US.
The move by the auto regulator addresses a previous limitation that only allowed foreign-built autonomous vehicles (AVs) to be eligible for exemptions, putting American manufacturers at a disadvantage.
NHTSA Chief Counsel Peter Simshauser stated: “Thanks to the expanded AVEP, transportation innovators can be confident in getting speedy review of their vehicles and, as appropriate, exemption from Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.
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By GlobalData“We look forward to continuing our work to ensure these exciting technologies are tested safely on our roads.”
In 2022, NHTSA initiated an investigation to determine if Zoox’s self-driving vehicles, which lack traditional driving controls, met federal safety standards after the company self-certified the vehicles.
Following Zoox’s application for an exemption from certain requirements this June, NHTSA granted the exemption, effectively closing its investigation into the company’s self-certification practices.
As part of the exemption terms, Zoox is required to remove or conceal any claims that its purpose-built vehicles meet all applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards.
In June 2025, Zoox inaugurated its first serial production facility for purpose-built robotaxis in the US.
This facility, located in California, covers an area of 220,000ft2 and is designed to bolster Zoox’s expansion and support the deployment of its robotaxi services in various markets.
