“Apollo Go” is a Chinese robotaxi brand that has been deployed in more than ten cities across China. Recently, it has become a controversial topic on Chinese social networks due to protests by taxi and ride-hailing drivers in Wuhan, who claim that “Apollo Go” is taking away their business.
We found a Chinese blog post that provides insight into how Chinese people view robotaxis, and we have translated it for your reference. Here is the translation.
Robotaxis Should Be Developed, and It’s a Must
Recently, the controversy surrounding Wuhan’s Apollo Go robotaxis has made most people feel the division in this world—while I am still stuck in endless traffic jams, you are already riding in driverless taxis?
Even those who don’t frequently follow the automotive industry may have heard that with the rapid development of electric vehicles, autonomous driving technology from various manufacturers has advanced by leaps and bounds. For example, Huawei’s smart driving technology has already achieved driverless operation without maps, and there are numerous videos online showing autonomous driving experiences on rural roads and even mountain trails.
However, the autonomous driving technology that the general public is familiar with is primarily applied to consumer vehicles. In contrast, autonomous taxis, which are increasingly being deployed in commercial applications, only began to gain traction as internet hotspots after numerous social media influencers experienced and promoted them.
In fact, autonomous taxis are not a new phenomenon. On the evening of March 18, 2018, in Tempe, Arizona, USA, an autonomous Uber vehicle struck and killed a pedestrian crossing the street, marking the world’s first fatal accident involving an autonomous vehicle. Following this incident, Uber halted all autonomous driving tests in cities. Uber, which failed to compete with Didi in the domestic market (China), was eventually acquired by Didi.
Unlike the rapid and chaotic growth of autonomous driving in the U.S., which quickly faced setbacks after accidents, the development, testing, and deployment of autonomous taxis in China has been more steady and methodical.
Apollo Go, the autonomous driving service platform of Baidu, is a key player in this field. Baidu began working on autonomous driving technology as early as 2013, making it one of the earliest companies to enter the market. Autonomous driving technology relies not only on sensors, processors, and algorithms, but also on extensive data collection from real-world scenarios to further refine and optimize the system. This process requires time and accumulation; it cannot be achieved overnight. This is the advantage that Baidu Apollo, with its 10 years of development history, possesses.
While China is making significant strides in the autonomous driving sector, Apple has shelved and canceled all development plans for its autonomous electric vehicle. This project, which spanned ten years and invested over a billion dollars, has now sunk beneath the surface. Meanwhile, another American company, NVIDIA, is actively recruiting, poaching talent from Baidu Apollo, and announcing its entry into the autonomous driving race.
Even a powerful company like Apple, which has no shortage of talent or money, couldn’t conquer autonomous driving. Chinese companies have also invested a substantial amount of time and money and must continue to develop, test, and implement their results to solidify their leading position. As Chinese automakers begin to show initial results, NVIDIA is willing to spend heavily to acquire talent, and Tesla’s vision and investment in autonomous driving have never ceased. If they slack off now, Chinese car companies risk being overtaken.
For a product to be commercially viable and accepted by the market, its technology must be relatively mature. If we don’t develop autonomous driving technology, someone else will. If we don’t capture the robotaxi market, someone else will.
If we worry about the livelihoods of taxi and ride-hailing drivers, should we also pity the weavers in Jiangnan (referring to manual weavers replaced by machines) and Xiangzi, the rickshaw puller in Beiping (the protagonist from Lao She’s work “Rickshaw Boy”)? History has its trends: those who follow it prosper, those who oppose it perish. Don’t foolishly think you can resist or obstruct it.
