Amazon’s Self-Driving Zoox Robotaxis Hit Los Angeles for First Public Tests

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Hey everyone,

Just a quick heads-up: Amazon kicks off their robotaxi venture and a charity is using AI to raise money.

What’s inside today’s newsletter:

• 🌐 Tech Pulse: A nonprofit is using AI agents to raise money for charity.

• 5 New Tools on the Block

• 🔎 Spotlight: Amazon’s Self-Driving Zoox Robotaxis Hit Los Angeles for First Public Tests

• 🤝 Who is getting funded?

• ✅ To-dos

🌐 Tech Pulse

• Reddit’s conversational AI search tool leverages Google Gemini.

• Samsung adds Google’s Gemini to its home robot Ballie.

• Google’s newest Gemini AI model focuses on efficiency.

• Ironwood is Google’s newest AI accelerator chip.

• A nonprofit is using AI agents to raise money for charity.

• Mira Murati’s AI startup gains prominent ex-OpenAI advisers.

• Amazon unveils a new AI voice model, Nova Sonic.

• Snapchat rolls out Sponsored AI Lenses for brands.

• Meta introduces restricted Teen Accounts to Facebook and Messenger.

• Dr. Oz Pushed for AI Health Care in First Medicare Agency Town Hall.
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🔧 New Tools on the Block

1. The Swarm: Relationships. Are. Back.

2. Helix: Your collaborative AI coding Agent.

3. AI Command Bar: Turn you user’s words into actions.

4. Sherlock: Stop AI-assisted cheating in remote interviews.

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🔎 Spotlight: Amazon’s Self-Driving Zoox Robotaxis Hit Los Angeles for First Public Tests

Summary: the expansion of Zoox, Amazon's self-driving car division, into Los Angeles with a fleet of test vehicles to collect mapping data. While competitor Waymo already offers public robotaxi rides in LA, Zoox is in an earlier phase, currently utilizing manually driven vehicles equipped with their autonomous technology for data gathering. The piece also highlights Zoox's ongoing testing in other cities with both retrofitted vehicles and purpose-built, driverless robotaxis, alongside a recent software recall, positioning Zoox as a developing player in the autonomous vehicle landscape alongside more established services like Waymo.

Here’s why it matters:

• This deployment marks Zoox's entry into its sixth city, indicating a significant expansion of its testing operations and laying the groundwork for a future robotaxi service.

• The data-collection effort, using manually driven vehicles equipped with Zoox's self-driving tech, is a necessary step towards broader autonomous testing in Los Angeles later this summer and eventual public rides.

• Zoox's arrival in Los Angeles puts it in the same city as rival Waymo, which already offers paid robotaxi rides, highlighting Zoox's progress in a competitive autonomous vehicle market, even though they are currently in earlier stages.

Sources: TechCrunch, Zoox

 🤝 Who is getting funded?

• Sizl raises $3.5M to expand its cook-to-order food delivery service.

• Blackbird gobbles up $50M for its blockchain-based payment-loyalty app for restaurants.

• Los Angeles-based Rain raised a $75M Series B in another good sign for fintech.

• A 25-year-old police drone founder just raised $75M led by Index.

• Lyst, a fashion marketplace once valued at $700M, sells to Japan’s Zozo for $154M.

 😂 Tech Memes

✅ To-dos

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