Robotaxi

"Stock-wise, we think this may unlock a lever of optionality if Xpeng can gain some credibility in respect to this endeavor," Edison Yu's team said.

This is the third model Baidu has developed in partnership with car companies since the Apollo Moon was announced in June.

Intel will launch a self-driving ride-hailing robotaxi service test in Munich next year, with plans to roll it out across Germany and eventually Europe in the next few years.

Baidu Apollo will expand its robotaxi fleet in Shanghai by more than 200 units, making it the largest self-driving fleet in East China, the company said.

DeepRoute has deployed 20 robotaxis in Shenzhen, operating in an area covering nearly 100 stations including the core CBD, with a total operating stretch of more than 200 kilometers.

SAIC plans to achieve mass production of Robotaxis by 2025.

Chinese driverless company AutoX unveiled its fifth-generation driverless system, AutoX Gen5, on Tuesday, with its core computing platform, AutoX XCU, reaching a new high in China's in-vehicle computing power.

Pony.ai announced on June 22 that fully driverless vehicles have now joined the Guangzhou Robotaxi fleet, and the public will have the opportunity to see these vehicles on the streets of Nansha, Guangzhou.

Baidu said on Thursday that its Apollo self-driving Robotaxi will officially start regular commercial operations, and the public can start experiencing the world's first fully self-driving cab service from May 2.

Baidu's autonomous driving platform Apollo has partnered with Chinese LiDAR company Hesai Photonics Technology to develop a LiDAR for use in Baidu's fifth-generation self-driving Robotaxi.