Pand Auto, Baidu launch car-sharing service with autonomous vehicles

Pand Auto, a car-hailing platform for new energy vehicles, and China's leading search engine Baidu, launched its demonstration program of driverless car technology in Liangjiang Digital Economy Park in Chongqing on May 24.

It is the first such project in China to explore the commercialization of this technology.

Pand Auto provides vehicles and an operation platform for Baidu's Apollo driverless technology application Valet Parking.

With this technology, the car user now can press one button on Pand Auto App and the car can automatically drive to the pick-up location and return to the parking space within the test area. There are six Pand Auto cars equipped with such platform and the public can register with the company to experience the driverless technology in the coming month.

Pand Auto started to cooperate with Baidu in the development of driverless new energy sharing vehicle platform in November.

"In the future, the application of driverless technology in the large scale can enhance the users' experience and reduce the operational cost of our company," said Pand Auto CEO Gao Yu at the launch ceremony.