In Beijing, it is now possible to take a taxi without anyone behind the wheel.

For the first time in China, people will be able to take a taxi without anyone behind the wheel.

Technology company Baidu and self-driving startup Pony.ai announced on Thursday that they have secured the country’s first permits for driverless robotaxi services. Permits do not require a person to sit in the driver’s seat.

The services launched in Beijing on Thursday and allow passengers to call taxis using regular car search apps. Currently, the programs are offered free of charge to passengers.

For now, each company will be restricted to driving within a designated area of ​​60 square kilometers and will have to keep an operator in the front passenger seat who can take the wheel in an emergency.

The announcement marks a major step forward for autonomous vehicle technology in the world’s largest car market.

Baidu is best known for its search engine, but it also has the largest autonomous driving fleet in China. According to the company, it would start with 10 vehicles in the program and add 30 later. Bottom of the form

Pony.ai, a fast-growing startup that was founded by former Baidu engineers in Fremont, Calif., said about 300,000 Beijing residents will be able to try the experience. The company is backed by automakers including Toyota (TM), and was last valued at $8.5 billion.

China has become an important testing ground for autonomous vehicles, with a small set of ambitious companies making new advances on several fronts, such as removing the safety driver, opening their services to the public or driving on public roads. , in addition to the high number of kilometers covered by its test vehicles.

Baidu had already secured authorization to offer self-driving vehicle transport services in several cities, including Beijing, although a human being was still required in the driver’s seat.

AutoX, another Chinese startup, backed by Alibaba (BABA), also launched fully driverless robotaxis on public roads in Shenzhen in 2020 — but that initiative could not accept regular passengers.