Baidu, PostBus get regulatory nod for robotaxi service in eastern Switzerland

Baidu said on Friday its autonomous vehicle service AmiGo, developed in partnership with Switzerland's public bus operator PostBus, received a regulatory approval for operations in the eastern region of the European country.

Here are ‌the ⁠details:

Baidu ⁠aims to launch regular fully driverless operations of ​the joint service by early 2027, provided all safety and ​regulatory requirements are met.


The company said the service is set to be Europe's largest automated public transport operation ⁠of its ‌kind.

The service will use ​Apollo Go's ​fully electric RT6 vehicles, each ⁠capable of carrying three passengers and equipped ​with over 30 sensors, the company ​said.

Baidu said AmiGo's services will be bookable through a dedicated app.

Level 4 autonomous driving is a level of automation where the vehicle can operate without a ‌human driver under specific conditions.

Baidu had announced a partnership with PostBus last ​year, ​as the Chinese ⁠tech firm accelerates a global push of its self-driving business.

China's leading search engine operator, Baidu, ​has been increasing its focus on technologies including AI and self-driving as its advertising-driven search engine business has slowed due to a weakening Chinese economy.