China's first self-driving taxis arrive in Changsha

Changsha government signed an agreement with China's tech giant Baidu on Oct 29 to cooperate and develop self-driving technology in the city based on the world's first and largest open source autonomous driving platform, Apollo.

The cooperation agreement was signed by Baidu, Changsha municipal people's government and the management committee of Hunan Xiangjiang New Area. As the center of Changsha intelligent manufacturing, the intelligent system test zone of Xiangjiang New Area has a variety of testing grounds, the longest test road mileage and the most complete research and development facilities. More than 10 enterprises have carried out over 130 tests since it opened on June 12 this year.

Baidu Apollo will explore new modes of intelligent travel in designated areas and open roads in Changsha, with the first 100 autonomous taxis arriving in Changsha for test runs in 2019. Apollo minibuses will also be available in closed parks and scenic spots to serve passengers and tourists and the company will build a smart bus route to promote the intelligent upgrade of public travel.

Baidu Apollo open platform is currently the world's largest and most powerful autonomous driving ecosystem, with nearly 130 partners. Apollo self-driving cars have launched road testing all around the world, including in Beijing, Changsha, and Silicon Valley. It has also cooperated with Xiong'an New Area, Changsha and other places to explore intelligent new car-road coordination.

Hu Henghua, Party chief of Changsha municipal Party committee, attended the signing ceremony and said that he hopes more globally leading enterprises like Baidu will come and work in Changsha to explore the development of the artificial intelligence industry, adding that Changsha will fully support Baidu and other well-known enterprises to develop in the city.