Amazon buys company Zoox that builds self-driving cars

Amazon has bought Zoox, a company that builds autonomously driving cars. The acquisition would be worth more than a billion euros. Zoox will continue to exist as a separate company within Amazon, with the same founders at the top.

Amazon says it has entered into an agreement with the company for an acquisition. Both companies do not mention an amount, but sources including the Financial Times say that Amazon is paying $1.2 billion for the start-up. That is converted to 1.07 billion euros.

It is not immediately clear what Amazon wants to do with the company. Zoox will continue to exist as a separate entity within Amazon. The current CEO and COO, Aicha Evans and Jesse Levinson, will continue to manage the company. Amazon wants to ‘make Zoox’s vision of autonomous driving a reality’.

Zoox is a start-up that started in 2014. The company wants to make ‘fit-for-purpose’ vehicles that can drive themselves, including the associated software and artificial intelligence. The company previously raised more than a billion dollars in investments and is already testing with field tests in California.