Details
- Baidu Inc. has begun the first fully driverless Apollo Go robotaxi trials in Hong Kong, operating without an on-board safety driver.
- The service is running in heavy rain and busy traffic on slick roads, underscoring the system's ability to handle complex real-world conditions.
- Hong Kong's Transport Department has granted Apollo Go the city's first fully driverless vehicle testing permit, allowing public road trials on Airport Island.
- This marks the world's first fully driverless public road test in a right-hand-drive, left-hand-traffic market, a key milestone for Baidu's expansion beyond mainland China.
- The trial is classified as Level 4 autonomy, with vehicles monitored remotely rather than by a human inside the car.
- Apollo Go has previously accumulated tens of thousands of kilometres of safe driving in Hong Kong under earlier pilot licences that still required safety operators.
- Hong Kong's approval builds on a new regulatory regime for autonomous vehicles, positioning the city as a testbed for advanced robotaxi services.
- Baidu aims to use the Hong Kong deployment as a reference for scaling Apollo Go into other right-hand-drive markets globally.
Impact
Baidu’s fully driverless Apollo Go trials in Hong Kong signal a strategic push into right-hand-drive markets and deepen China’s presence in global robotaxi competition alongside players like Waymo and Cruise. Hong Kong’s regulatory support may accelerate commercialisation of Level 4 services in dense urban settings, offering a model for other governments weighing safety, innovation, and traffic management in autonomous mobility policy.
