Baidu, the Chinese internet giant and pioneer in autonomous driving, is set to bring its robotaxi service to European streets in 2026. The announcement marks one of China’s most ambitious international moves in the field of self-driving transport to date.
In a deal announced on Monday, Baidu said it will partner with US ride-hailing firm Lyft to deploy its Apollo Go autonomous vehicles in Germany and the United Kingdom, pending regulatory approval.
The two companies aim to expand the fleet to thousands of vehicles across major European markets over the coming years. After the electric car revolution, China is stepping up to beat Western car brands in automated mobility services.
“Critical market”
The agreement represents Baidu’s first robotaxi venture on European soil. The company is not beating around the bush. The deal comes just weeks after the Chinese company signed a separate agreement with Lyft’s rival Uber to introduce autonomous taxis in Asia and the Middle East.
“Europe is a critical market for autonomous mobility,” Baidu said in a statement. “Our partnership with Lyft allows us to bring our world-class AV technology to millions of European riders.”
For Lyft, which until now has operated solely in the US and a handful of Canadian cities, the partnership functions as a wider gateway into Europe. It comes on top of its late April acquisition of Freenow, the major European taxi app operating in nine countries and over 180 cities, from BMW and Mercedes-Benz. This move more than doubled Lyft’s potential market, which now covers over 300 billion annual personal vehicle trips.
David Risher, Lyft’s CEO, said: “Their extensive track record (Baidu, ed.) operating the world’s largest autonomous ride-hailing service means we can bring all the benefits of AVs – safety, reliability, and privacy – to millions of Europeans.”
Pilot phase
Indeed, Baidu has emerged as a major force in China’s push towards driverless mobility since it entered the autonomous vehicle sector in 2013. Its Apollo Go service has completed more than 11 million rides across 15 Chinese cities. The latest generation of its robotaxis – which will be deployed in Europe – is designed for full autonomy, without the need for safety drivers.
However, in both Germany and the UK, commercial deployment remains a complex process and still depends on necessary legislative approval. Therefore, robotaxis remain in a pilot phase across Europe.
Among major local car brands, only Volkswagen has already begun testing autonomous shuttles in Hamburg through its partnership with Israeli firm Mobileye. It seems that, once again, mainly Chinese firms are manoeuvring into this market. WeRide and Pony.ai have announced that they are also eyeing pilot projects in Europe and the Middle East.
