Baidu Inc unveiled a new version from the self-driving robotaxi it says costs nearly half as much to generate as the previous design, opening the opportunity designed for cheaper travel.
Apollo RT6 robotaxis are set to be mass-produced at a cost of 250, 000 yuan (RM164, 718) per unit, the Chinese language search-engine giant stated in a statement upon July 21. The car, which has a detachable controls, will become available on Baidu’s riding-hailing service within 2023. The company mentioned it plans to eventually deploy “tens of thousands” from the robotaxis.
“We are moving toward a future where taking a robotaxi will be fifty percent the cost of taking a taxi cab today, ” Baidu co-founder and chief executive officer Robin Li mentioned in the statement.
Beijing-based Baidu can be expanding beyond Web advertising with its push directly into artificial intelligence technology and autonomous traveling, making it less of the target in China’s crackdown on technology firms such as Alibaba Group Holding Limited and Tencent Holdings Ltd. Still, the country’s weakening economic climate and Covid limitations add to uncertainty more than its near-term view.
Baidu’s ride-hailing platform Apollo Go deploys 300 driverless cars in major cities including Shanghai and Beijing, and might become profitable in certain regions in three years, company vice leader Wei Dong informed Bloomberg News in April. Baidu has said it plans to expand Apollo Go into 65 Chinese cities by 2025, increasing to 100 simply by 2030.
The Apollo RT6 includes a projected operating routine of more than five years, a Baidu spokeswoman said in an email, adding that the company’s self-developed technology plus low-cost sensors assisted reduce production expenses. – Bloomberg