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Baidu Partners with Switzerland’s PostBus to Launch Apollo Go Robotaxis in Europe

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Baidu (9888.HK) announced a partnership with Switzerland’s PostBus on Wednesday to bring its Apollo Go autonomous vehicle service to the country, marking the Chinese tech giant’s first robotaxi deployment in Europe. The deal highlights Baidu’s rapid international expansion in self-driving technology amid slowing growth in its traditional advertising business.

Under the partnership, PostBus, a subsidiary of Swiss Post and one of the country’s major public transport operators, will collaborate with Baidu to introduce driverless vehicles to eastern Switzerland. The service will cover the cantons of St. Gallen, Appenzell Ausserrhoden, and Appenzell Innerrhoden, with a trial fleet set to begin testing in December 2025 and full operations expected by early 2027, according to Baidu’s statement.

The agreement follows Baidu’s recent partnerships with Lyft and Uber, under which the company will deploy thousands of its Apollo Go robotaxis across several European and international markets beginning next year. The Swiss launch signals Baidu’s ambition to become a key player in global autonomous mobility, challenging U.S. and European rivals such as Waymo, Cruise, and Mobileye.

Baidu said its Apollo Go platform now operates more than 1,000 fully driverless vehicles in 16 cities worldwide, including Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Hong Kong. The company has positioned Apollo Go as one of the largest autonomous ride-hailing services in the world, with millions of rides completed.

As China’s economy cools, Baidu has increasingly shifted its focus toward artificial intelligence and autonomous transportation technologies to diversify its revenue. The collaboration with PostBus gives Baidu a foothold in the European market, where regulatory approval for driverless vehicles has been gradually expanding.

Industry analysts say the partnership could make Switzerland a testing ground for wider European adoption of Baidu’s robotaxi systems, blending Chinese innovation with Swiss public transport infrastructure.

Bolt CEO urges EU to prioritize self-driving tech to compete with U.S. and China

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Europe must invest far more aggressively in autonomous vehicle technology if it wants to remain competitive against the United States and China, according to Markus Villig, CEO of Estonian ride-hailing and food delivery company Bolt.

Speaking to journalists on Friday, Villig said the European Union’s heavy focus on electric vehicles (EVs) risks sidelining what he called the “core technology of the next decade” — self-driving systems.

“There’s so much attention on EVs, but we’ve lost the plot on autonomous driving,” Villig said, warning that the technology gap between Europe and its global rivals is widening fast.

U.S. firms like Alphabet’s Waymo and Tesla, as well as Chinese players such as Baidu, WeRide, and Pony.ai, are leading the autonomous driving race. Waymo is preparing to launch autonomous ride-hailing services in London next year, highlighting Europe’s reliance on foreign technologies.

Villig said that the EU should treat autonomous mobility as a strategic technology, not just an industrial one, with implications for security and digital sovereignty. While the bloc is spending tens of billions of euros on EV subsidies and supply chains, he argued that comparable funding for self-driving development is virtually absent.

He proposed that the EU support domestic startups through subsidies and exclusive operating licences for robotaxis in certain cities, to help local firms gain scale before foreign competitors dominate the market.

Villig was scheduled to meet EU technology chief Henna Virkkunen later on Friday to discuss Europe’s role in the next generation of transport innovation.

Alibaba and Baidu Turn to In-House Chips for AI Training Amid U.S. Restrictions

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Alibaba and Baidu have begun using their own internally designed chips to train AI models, partly replacing Nvidia’s processors, according to a report from The Information. The move signals a major shift in China’s AI development strategy, as U.S. export controls continue to restrict access to advanced American-made semiconductors.

Key Developments

  • Alibaba has used its homegrown chips since early 2025 to train smaller AI models.

  • Baidu is testing its Kunlun P800 chip to train new versions of its Ernie AI model.

  • Both companies still rely on Nvidia for their most advanced models but are working to reduce dependence.

Impact on Nvidia

Nvidia remains dominant in AI training hardware, but China accounts for a large share of its business. The firm’s most powerful U.S.-approved chip for China, the H20, lags behind the H100 and Blackwell series — but still outperforms most Chinese alternatives.

However, employees cited by The Information said Alibaba’s latest AI chip matches the performance of Nvidia’s H20, narrowing the gap between U.S. and Chinese hardware.

An Nvidia spokesperson responded: “The competition has undeniably arrived … We’ll continue to work to earn the trust and support of mainstream developers everywhere.”

Geopolitical Pressure

  • U.S. export restrictions have pushed Chinese companies to accelerate domestic chip design.

  • Beijing has urged firms to rely on home-grown semiconductor technology as part of its strategic autonomy push.

  • Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang recently said talks with the White House over permission to sell a less advanced next-gen chip to China will take time.

According to the report, Nvidia has agreed to give the Trump administration 15% of China sales of its H20 chips in exchange for continued export licenses.

The Bigger Picture

China’s pivot toward domestic AI chips marks both a risk to Nvidia’s China revenues and a milestone for Chinese chipmakers, who are beginning to close the performance gap under intense geopolitical and economic pressure.