Baidu, China's leading robot taxi company, wants to enter Europe

Driverless taxis, or even steering wheels, coming soon to Europe? On August 12, Baidu, the Chinese equivalent of Google, and the American ride-sharing service Lyft announced their intention to deploy robot taxis in Germany and the United Kingdom starting in 2026. These vehicles, capable of traveling without a driver or security guard within a defined perimeter – known as level 4 autonomy – will be available on the Lyft app.

Neither company has specified in which British and German cities the service will be operational, nor how long it might take to obtain regulatory approval. What is known, however, is that this initiative is an extension of Apollo Go, a service already operational in China. And that this entry into the European market is part of a global expansion: on July 15, Baidu sealed an alliance with Uber to establish itself in Asia and the Middle East.

Globally, 16 urban fleets of driverless robot taxis without an on-board operator were operating in 2024: 12 in China and four in the United States. Apollo Go is one of the world leaders with more than 5 million trips and 100 million kilometers traveled, specifies France Stratégie, which published an analysis note on robot taxis in May 2024. According to this note, the company deployed more than 1,000 autonomous vehicles at the end of 2023, divided into four fleets in Beijing, Shenzen, Chongqin and Wuhan. It aims to cover 100 cities by 2030.

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