It is safe to assume that in the future, self-driving cars will become the mainstay in transportation. This is because self-driving cars have the potential to be safer and more efficient due to it taking out the human factor in driving. However before that happens, there still needs to be a lot of work done.
However over in China, it seems that Baidu is doubling its efforts. The company has recently announced that they will be partnering up with local ride-hailing service Shouqi. This partnership will see Baidu offer the ride-hailing company access to tools it needs for its businesses, including map services, Apollo autonomous platform, and the DuerOS AI platform, and in return Shouqi will be providing Baidu with high-precision maps that will help its self-driving cars navigate the roads better.
Baidu’s self-driving car efforts are hardly a secret. The company has teamed up with a variety of companies in the past as well as recent times. For example the company had previously teamed up with the likes of BMW, and recently just a few months ago, they announced a partnership with Microsoft as well.
Earlier this month Baidu also announced their plans to expand not just into cars, but also self-driving buses which they’re hoping to get up and running by next year.
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