2023-01-09
The largest zone for commercial robotaxi
Baidu, a company specializing in artificial intelligence and often referred to as the Chinese equivalent of Google, has begun a large-scale expansion of its commercial autonomous robot taxi service in Wuhan. This expansion will triple the size of the current operating area, increase the number of autonomous machines in operation and extend the service life.
The move marks an important milestone in Baidu's ambitious roadmap for the development of autonomous rides, as the company plans to commission 200 more fully self-driving taxis across China in 2023, aiming to cover "the world's largest fully self-driving service area" by the end of the year.
The Baidu Apollo Go autonomous platform will cover an area of 130 square kilometers in Wuhan, serving a population of 1 million people. The service will be available to residents of the region from 7 am to 11 pm. Baidu has become the first and currently the only supplier in China providing commercial services of fully unmanned robotaxis in the evening hours.
Over the past few months, Apollo Go has demonstrated growth in Wuhan, starting operations in the city in May 2022. Three months later, Wuhan became the first city in China to begin commercial operation of a fully autonomous car, after Apollo Go upgraded its services in August.
As one of the leading centers of innovation in the automotive industry in central China, Wuhan actively pursues a policy of supporting autonomous driving. Currently, more than 400 kilometers of roads in Wuhan are fully equipped with intelligent networks.
Baidu has accumulated more than 40 million km of autonomous mileage and 3,477 patents for autonomous driving. In addition to Wuhan, Apollo Go currently provides commercial autonomous travel services in Beijing, Shenzhen and Chongqing. By the end of the third quarter of this year, the total volume of Apollo Go orders exceeded 1.4 million.
Wang Chong, chief brand manager of Baidu Intelligent Driving Group, says: "Building on the firm foundation of the company in the field of AI, Baidu offers a safe, intelligent and efficient system of autonomous driving technologies, ranging from fully autonomous control to large-scale commercial operation."
Chong claims that Baidu's autonomous driving technology is developing at a faster pace than expected. Currently, the deployment of autonomous driving technology in the new city is 20 days.
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