A tech giant Baidu Inc. has developed an autonomous taxi. It was found running on a Beijing Street when its sensors pointed out a delivery cart interfering with its lane. The taxi stopped a half-car length away just behind the car and recorded a voice apologizing to passengers saying “So sorry”. The steering wheel autonomously turned the wheels and the taxi made its way around the cart.

However, a Baidu technician was watching the self-governing vehicle from the passenger seat. Baidu (BIDU) has the top-profile rival with -0.93% in a multibillion-dollar competition with various autonomous vehicle manufacturers. Some key rivals include Alphabet’s GOOG at -3.30%, Waymo at -3.47%, and General Motors Company GM Cruise at -1.85%.

Baidu and Pony.AI Received China’s First Licenses in April

It is noteworthy that Baidu and one of its competitors, Pony.ai received their first licenses in China in April. They will now operate their self-governing vehicles with an active safety supervisor in the vehicle. The move came 18 months after Waymo began autonomous ride-calling service in Arizona and Phoenix in October 2020.

Meanwhile, Baidu was established as a search engine operator in 2000 but has extended into AI, Processor Chips, and others. The company claimed that its self-governing vehicles would successfully provide a simpler, safer, and cheaper driving experience. The vice president of Baidu’s Intelligent Driving Group, Wei Dong issued a statement. He said the key objective of self-driving is to decrease human-involved traffic incidents.

Autonomous Taxi Service with a Supervisor Started in 2020

Moreover, self-driving has become one of the lineups of growing technologies from Artificial Intelligence to Renewable Energy. The Chinese companies are investing billions of dollars in most emerging technologies. The country needs to join the US, Japan, and Europe with the technology to establish its resources and global authority.

It stretches the probability of new innovations but adds tension with the US and its allies. They also consider China as one of the strategic opponents. However, the Apollo autonomous driving platform of Baidu was established in 2017 and started Apollo Go self-governing taxi service in 2020. Keep in mind that taxi service with a supervisor at the wheel to manage an emergency began in 2020.

Apollo Go Offered 213,000 Autonomous Rides in the 4th Quarter of 2021

This service was extended to Beijing, shanghai, and 8 other cities in the country. Apollo Go claimed that it offered 213,000 autonomous rides in the last quarter of 2021. It marked Apollo Go as the busiest self-driving taxi service in the world. However, Apollo Go began service in a 60 Square Kilometer area of Yi Zhuang with a supervisor in the passenger seat.

Moreover, Yi Zhuang is an industrial district with wider streets and few cyclists or pedestrians at the southern border of Beijing. Other companies including Deeproute.ai, Pony.ai, and AutoX were established in 2016. The venture capital-backed Pony.ai for road-testing self-driving cars and semi-trailer trucks. Most industry plans are more aggressive in delivering the Robo-taxi to the consumer.

Baidu is Expecting $1.9 Billion in Revenue

Automaker Geely 175 is the owner of Volvo Car, Lotus, Geely, and Polestar with -9.02%. The company has also announced plans to offer satellite-linked self-driving vehicles. Moreover, Huawei Technologies Ltd. is a network equipment manufacturer. The company is now working on autonomous mining and industrial vehicles.

Baidu said the company is already selling navigation and other technology to auto manufacturers. The total projected sales of the company are around $1.5 billion (10 billion Yuan). Last year, the company reportedly spent around $885 million on research and development. But Baidu didn’t disclose the investment amount in autonomous vehicles. The company reportedly earned a profit of $1.7 billion last year and is now expecting $19.5 billion in revenue.

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