Baidu has become the latest company to deploy driverless vehicles on public roads.
The Chinese technology company received a permit from Beijing transportation authorities on Friday to conduct testing with five driverless taxis — those without a human safety backup — on the city’s streets.
“Obtaining permission or driverless testing in Beijing represents a breakthrough that will accelerate Baidu’s push to commercialize autonomous driving,” a Baidu spokesperson said in a written statement.
The development comes mere days after AutoX, a Chinese competitor, became the first company to roll out autonomous vehicles without safety drivers in China. AutoX received a permit to operate as many as 25 driverless vehicles in Shenzhen.
Across the global industry, more companies are removing — or planning to remove — human safety drivers from their test vehicles. Notably, Waymo expanded the audience for its rider-only operations in metro Phoenix in October. General Motors-backed Cruise plans to launch driverless operations in San Francisco by the end of the year.
Chinese autonomous-driving companies have been some of the most assertive in expanding overall operations during a topsy-turvy year. As the pandemic hit the country and then subsided, WeRide, AutoX, Baidu, Pony.Ai and Didi Chuxing have dispatched hundreds of robotaxis in multiple projects and locations.
In order to receive a permit in Beijing, Baidu had to complete 30,000 kilometers of public-road testing, pass a closed-course evaluation and establish remote links to its vehicles. The company has developed and deployed what it calls 5G Remote Driving Service, which allows human operators to provide remote assistance in the event of an emergency or a tricky scenario.
China’s government has pushed the development of 5G-enabled vehicles for autonomous-driving and connected-tech purposes. One out of every four global vehicles will have embedded 5G connectivity by 2025, according to a report issued this week by Counterpoint Research, and the Chinese market will account for a majority of those vehicles sold over in the next five years.
The driverless deployment is the latest step in Baidu’s Beijing pilot project. In October, the company opened its Apollo Go robotaxi service, with safety drivers aboard, to the public and expanded to more than 100 potential pickup-and-drop-off locations. Further, Baidu launched Apollo Go ride-hailing service to the public in Changsha and Cangzhou.