TECH

Tech Brief (Nov. 4): Baidu’s Robotaxi Service Expands to 22 Cities

Published: Nov. 4, 2025 6:19 p.m. GMT+8

00:00

00:00/00:00

Listen to this article 1x

Baidu’s Apollo Go Expands to 22 Cities

Baidu Inc.’s robotaxi service, Apollo Go, has expanded its operations to 22 cities worldwide, the company disclosed Nov. 3. As of Oct. 31, the service was handling over 250,000 fully driverless orders per week. Apollo Go has completed more than 17 million rides globally, with its autonomous vehicles clocking over 240 million kilometers, of which more than 140 million kilometers were fully driverless. The company said its driverless vehicles average one accident serious enough to deploy an airbag every 10.14 million kilometers and have never caused a major injury or death.

Unlock exclusive discounts with a Caixin group subscription — ideal for teams and organizations.

Subscribe to both Caixin Global and The Wall Street Journal — for the price of one.

Disclaimer

This is an AI-generated English rendering of original reporting or commentary published by Caixin Media. In the event of any discrepancies, the Chinese version shall prevail.

Share this article

Open WeChat and scan the QR code

DIGEST HUB

Digest Hub

Back

Explore the story in 30 seconds

Baidu’s Apollo Go robotaxi operates in 22 cities, handling 250,000 weekly driverless orders, with 17 million rides and 240 million km completed.
Amazon and OpenAI agreed to a $38 billion, multi-year deal for AWS to power OpenAI’s AI workloads, starting immediately and expanding through 2027.
China’s central bank plans to use the digital yuan for cross-border payments, while Meituan launched a large model app, and Weineng raised $94 million.

AI generated, for reference only

Who’s Who

Baidu Inc.: Baidu Inc.'s robotaxi service, Apollo Go, has expanded to 22 cities. As of October 31, it handled over 250,000 fully driverless orders weekly, with more than 17 million rides completed globally. Its autonomous vehicles have covered over 240 million kilometers, 140 million of which were fully driverless, reporting no major injuries or deaths.

Amazon: Amazon, through its Amazon Web Services (AWS) division, has announced a multi-year strategic partnership with OpenAI, valued at $38 billion. This collaboration will see AWS providing infrastructure to support and scale OpenAI's core artificial intelligence workloads. OpenAI began utilizing AWS computing resources in November 2024, with full deployment anticipated by the end of 2026 and further expansion beyond 2027.

Amazon Web Services: Amazon Web Services (AWS) has entered a multi-year strategic partnership with OpenAI, valued at $38 billion. This collaboration, announced on November 3, will see AWS providing its infrastructure to support and scale OpenAI's core artificial intelligence workloads. OpenAI will begin utilizing AWS computing resources immediately.

OpenAI: OpenAI has entered a significant multi-year strategic partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS), valued at $38 billion. This collaboration, announced on November 3, involves AWS providing infrastructure to power and scale OpenAI's core artificial intelligence workloads. OpenAI will utilize AWS computing resources, with full deployment anticipated by the end of 2026 and further expansion beyond.

Meituan: Meituan launched its new LongCat-Flash-Omni model and began a public beta for its LongCat app. This app offers internet search and voice calls, with video calls coming soon. The web version also supports image/file uploads and voice calls.

Wuhan Weineng Battery Asset Co. Ltd.: Wuhan Weineng Battery Asset Co. Ltd. is a battery asset management service provider founded in 2020. The company recently completed a $94 million Series C funding round to boost R&D and service upgrades. It currently manages over 30 GWh of battery assets and serves more than 400,000 customers.

AI generated, for reference only

What Happened When

As of Oct. 31, 2025：: Baidu Apollo Go was handling over 250,000 fully driverless orders per week.

Nov. 3, 2025：: Baidu disclosed Apollo Go had expanded to 22 cities worldwide, completed more than 17 million rides globally, and its autonomous vehicles had clocked over 240 million kilometers (with over 140 million kilometers fully driverless).

Nov. 3, 2025：: Amazon Web Services and OpenAI announced a multi-year $38 billion partnership for AI infrastructure.

Nov. 3, 2025：: Amazon stated that OpenAI will immediately begin using AWS computing resources.

Nov. 3, 2025：: People’s Bank of China deputy governor announced plans to explore new cross-border digital yuan payment solutions.

Nov. 3, 2025：: Meituan released LongCat-Flash-Omni model and launched the public beta of the LongCat app.

Nov. 3, 2025：: Wuhan Weineng Battery Asset Co. Ltd. announced completion of a 670 million yuan ($94 million) Series C funding round.

AI generated, for reference only

GALLERY

: Gallery: China Celebrates Golden Week

NEWSLETTERS

Get our CX Daily, weekly Must-Read and China Green Bulletin newsletters delivered free to your inbox, bringing you China's top headlines.

We ‘ve added you to our subscriber list.

Manage subscription

PODCAST

Caixin Deep Dive: Why Singapore Sovereign Fund Sues Chinese EV-Maker Nio

00:00

00:00/00:00

MOST POPULAR

1: Export Rule That Roped in 20,000 Chinese Firms Suspended in U.S.-China Deal

2: China’s 2035 GDP Goal Requires 4.17% Annual Growth

3: China to Scrap Tariffs on U.S. Farm Goods, Buy More Soybeans

4: U.S., China Reach Broad Truce to Ease Trade War

5: Energy Insider: China Pauses Rare-Earth, Lithium-Battery Export Controls