The tech giant Baidu, Inc. BIDU recently made waves with the announcement of a substantial operation enhancement for its esteemed autonomous ride-hailing service platform, Apollo Go.
Apollo Go has now upped its game by offering a 24/7 autonomous driving service in specific regions of Wuhan, making history as China’s inaugural provider of such a groundbreaking service.
This extension to round-the-clock services represents a pivotal achievement for Apollo Go, ensuring seamless autonomous driving operations to suit various requirements, as mentioned in an official company statement.
The decision to extend services to all hours of the day caters to the demands of nighttime travel, ultimately bolstering safety and convenience for users.
According to the latest quarterly report, Baidu revealed that Apollo Go facilitated approximately 839K rides, marking a 49% YoY increase. By January 2, 2024, the total rides provided by Apollo Go on public roads had exceeded a remarkable 5 million.
On February 27, 2024, Apollo Go rolled out fully autonomous rides along the rugged terrain of the Yangtze River, spanning both its northern and southern banks, including iconic landmarks like the Yangsigang Yangtze River Bridge and Wuhan Baishazhou Bridge.
In a parallel move on February 23, 2024, Apollo Go unleashed a similar service in Beijing, coinciding with Baidu’s authorization for robotaxi pilot initiatives on highways leading to the Beijing Daxing Airport.
Earlier, in August 2023, Baidu introduced autonomous airport transportation services in Wuhan, affirming its leading position in China’s autonomous ride sector by seamlessly connecting urban streets with highways.
During the final quarter of 2023, the proportion of fully driverless orders within the overall order portfolio in Wuhan surged to 45%, up from 40% in the third quarter of 2023.
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Market Movement: The shares of BIDU are currently trading 1.02% higher at $98.81 during premarket hours as of the latest check on Friday.
Image Credit: Courtesy of the Company