Baidu’s autonomous driving division, Apollo Go, is reportedly exploring potential expansion into international markets in the near future. According to an inside source, discussions with various firms are underway, although specifics on timelines or targeted regions have not yet been revealed.
Baidu is currently one of China’s leading operators in the robotaxi sector. The company has made significant strides in autonomous driving technology and has been allowed by local regulators in cities like Beijing and Wuhan to run commercial self-driving taxi services. Wuhan stands out as Apollo Go’s largest area of operation, where robotaxis have been in use beyond just testing phases.
The move toward global expansion comes amid increasing competition in the robotaxi space, particularly as Tesla gears up for its much-anticipated robotaxi event this Thursday. Another Chinese player in the field, WeRide, recently announced a partnership to integrate its autonomous vehicles with Uber’s ride-hailing platform in Abu Dhabi. However, that collaboration is not expected to extend to the U.S. or Chinese markets.
In July, electric vehicle giant BYD also teamed up with Uber to work on developing “autonomous-capable vehicles” for Uber’s platform, though no further details have been disclosed regarding this partnership.
In China, Baidu’s Apollo Go, along with other companies like Pony.ai, heavily subsidizes robotaxi rides to drive user adoption. While regulations currently mandate a human attendant to be present inside some of the autonomous vehicles for safety reasons, Baidu continues to push forward with its self-driving services. By late July, Apollo Go had reportedly completed over 7 million robotaxi rides.
On a separate note, Baidu announced changes to its executive leadership on Tuesday. Rong Luo, who was serving as the company’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO), will step down from that role to take on the position of Executive Vice President overseeing Baidu’s mobile ecosystem unit. Junjie He, the former head of the mobile division, will take over as interim CFO. The company characterized these shifts as part of a “management rotation.”