China enters the race for autonomous cars

In Beijing, new laws have been passed to promote driverless public and private transport. But the whole country is investing massively.

Photo by: InsideEVs

By: Francesco Barontini

Jan 3, 2025 at 4:51am ET

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China understood before anyone else that the mobility of the future would be electric. The world's largest car market has also understood that the mobility of the future will be software-driven. This is why the land of the dragon is investing massively in autonomous driving.

The city of Beijing, for example, has just adopted updated legislation to encourage the development of driver assistance technologies, so that it can introduce driverless public and private transport services before others.

Starting in spring

From 1 April 2025 (the date on which the new law comes into force), self-driving vehicles will be able to circulate freely in the city. All you have to do to start the experiment is apply to the relevant office provided that the vehicles in question pass the preliminary safety assessments.

Baidu Yichi 06, the Chinese robotaxi

Photo : Baidu

The law, as reported by Bijing Daily, will allow driverless vehicles to be tested in cars, taxis, buses and even trams. The city has also stated that it plans to invest heavily in the development of a series of infrastructures to improve the connection and communication of intelligent vehicles.

A nationwide strategy

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Beijing's initiative is not an isolated one as there are around twenty other cities in China. This is one of the reasons why Tesla should also start testing Cybercabs in the shadow of the Great Wall. In addition to Elon Musk's company, the Chinese company Baidu, with its driverless passenger transport subsidiary Apollo, has declared that it will put a fleet of 1,000 robotaxis into service in the city of Wuhan.