Didi to mass produce self-driving EVs in partnership with Chinese carmaker GAC
- The first mass-produced robotaxi, based on AION’s latest EV platform, will be equipped with Didi’s autonomous driving solutions
- Didi has been preparing for a comeback with autonomous driving cars, a sector favoured by the government, after a 2021 crackdown
Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing said it plans to introduce autonomous driving vehicles into its car fleets by 2025, after renewing a partnership with Guangzhou Automobile Group (GAC) to make them.
Under the joint venture project dubbed AIDI, GAC’s subsidiary AION New Energy Automobile and Didi’s autonomous driving unit will team up to manufacture high-level autonomous driving vehicles, which are expected to be deployed into Didi's car fleets in 2025, according to a Didi statement on Wednesday.
The first mass-produced robotaxi, based on AION’s latest electric vehicle (EV) platform, will be equipped with Didi’s autonomous driving solutions. Didi has been testing its self-driving technology solutions with a small fleet in Shanghai’s Jiading district.
“Thanks to the launch of the joint AIDI project, Didi autonomous driving has entered a new phase in mass production,” said Zhang Bo, chief technology officer of Didi and CEO of Didi Autonomous Driving, adding that the unit has made many breakthroughs in the self-driving technology.
Beijing-based Didi has been preparing for a comeback with autonomous driving cars, a sector favoured by the government, after a 2021 crackdown wiped out billions of dollars in value and led to thousands of job losses at a company once hailed as China’s answer to Uber.