Baidu's Apollo Go and Freenow by Lyft Begin Road Testing in London
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BEIJING and LONDON, July 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU and HKEX: 9888) today announced that its autonomous ride-hailing platform, Apollo Go, has begun road testing in London with Freenow by Lyft. Testing will begin in the borough of Brent with safety operators on board, covering a mix of urban and suburban driving environments. Apollo Go and Freenow by Lyft plan to welcome public riders starting in 2027, subject to regulatory approvals. The deployment builds on the strategic partnership announced by Baidu and Lyft in 2025 for Lyft to deploy Apollo Go autonomous vehicles across key European markets through the Lyft platform. Under the partnership, Apollo Go provides the RT6 vehicles and autonomous driving technology, while Freenow by Lyft contributes its local operational expertise to ensure smooth testing and operation of the fleet. The London program builds on Apollo Go's testing experience in Hong Kong, its first right-hand-drive market. On July 23, 2026, Apollo Go received the first fully driverless trial permit from Hong Kong's Transport Department, with testing beginning on Airport Island on July 27. This marks Hong Kong's first Level 4 autonomous trial on public roads without an on-board safety operator, and the first fully driverless trial in any right-hand-drive market globally. These milestones demonstrate the adaptability of Apollo Go's...
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