Lyra Martin Auto 08.08.2022 06:Aug AM EDT

Baidu Receives Approval to Operate Autonomous Robotaxis in China

In China, Baidu has been authorized to run a completely autonomous robotaxi service, meaning it may now provide a service where the only humans utilizing the car are other passengers.

Baidu Obtains China's First Permission for Autonomous Robotaxi Operations

Baidu has been granted permission to operate a fully autonomous robotaxi service in China. The business claims to be the first in the nation to get such permits.

In April, Baidu was given permission to operate an autonomous taxi service in Beijing so long as a human operator was in the driver or front passenger seat. It will now be able to provide a service where the only people using the automobile are other passengers.

The permissions are subject to various restrictions. Driverless Apollo Go cars will transport paying customers exclusively during the day in some regions of Wuhan and Chongqing.

In Wuhan's Economic and Technological Development zone, also known as China's "Auto City," Baidu's service will be available from 9 am to 5 pm (9 pm to 5 am EDT) and span a 13 square kilometer area. The Chongqing service will cover a 30-square-kilometer region in the Yongchuan District from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm (9:30 pm to 4:30 am EDT). According to Baidu, each city will have a fleet of five Apollo 5th generation robotaxis.

Baidu claims its robotaxis contains several safety precautions to support the basic autonomous driving features. These include a safety operating system, remote driving capabilities, and redundant monitoring.

This is a significant advancement for Baidu as it seeks to provide robotaxi services on a broad scale. Additionally, the business has been testing its cars in the US for some time and might one day compete with companies like Waymo and Cruise.

Baidu Inc. Unveiled an Autonomous Car with a Replaceable Steering Wheel

Prior to Tesla Inc.'s intentions to begin mass manufacturing a comparable vehicle, China's Baidu Inc. presented a new autonomous vehicle with a removable steering wheel that it aims to utilize for its robotaxi service in 2023.

According to a statement made by Baidu, the long-dominant search engine in China, the new model is priced at roughly $37,000, which is less than half of the $71,000 for the car's previous iteration, which had a regular steering wheel and was delivered in June 2021.

Global automakers and firms that specialize in autonomous driving are competing to commercialize their technology and save costs. Governments still need to be convinced to relax restrictions on these services in the real world since China and the US have not yet authorized the widespread deployment of fully autonomous cars.

According to the business, Baidu's latest model, the Apollo RT6, will be equipped with a level-four autonomous driving system, which operates in most situations without the need for a driver. The electric variant will have 12 cameras beside the vehicle and eight LIDAR sensors, which use pulsed laser light to identify objects.

The business said that while Chinese law requires the vehicle to have a steering wheel, the ability to remove it would free up more room for the installation of additional seats and other entertainment equipment, such as videogame consoles if the restrictions were to change.