Geely and Baidu Enter Automated Driving Race with Tesla
China’s automated-driving sector is witnessing increased competition as Jiyue 01, the inaugural electric vehicle from a collaboration between Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. and Chinese search and technology powerhouse Baidu Inc., enters the market.
The sports utility vehicle launching on Friday is equipped with Baidu’s Apollo platform, which has been in development for 10 years and has been used in driverless vehicles since 2016. Although the Jiyue 01 still uses a high-precision map for assisted driving, it is moving towards a pure-vision approach that mostly uses cameras to assess the surrounding environment. Tesla also avoids more expensive Lidars and ultrasound radars.
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“Tesla is a pioneer in smart cars and a leader in global sales,” Luo Gang, chief operating officer of Geely-Baidu Jiyue, told reporters at a news conference. “But from a handling and user interface perspective, I think we would win. Compared to Model Y, which is the closest to our car in terms of space, design and interior, I think Jiyue 01 is better.
China is the world’s largest electric car market, and dozens of brands want to stand out from the crowd with new technologies. Although Tesla’s Model Y is one of the best-selling electric cars, the system it markets as Full Self-Driving is not available in the country.
Other competitors include Xpeng Inc. and Huawei Technologies Co., which have also developed advanced automated driving systems that allow vehicles to navigate autonomously and park themselves.
Security concerns
Chinese law has not yet determined whether the driver or the assisted driving system would take legal responsibility in the event of an accident. Most manufacturers are cautious and stick to Level 2 technology, where the vehicle can steer, accelerate or brake, but a human is still behind the wheel and always in charge of the controls.
Tesla is facing multiple lawsuits over its Autopilot feature, while General Motors Co’s driverless taxi unit Cruise has just shut down after its license was suspended in California over a pedestrian accident.
Jiyue 01 has a range of up to 720 kilometers (450 miles) using the world’s largest cell manufacturer Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. battery. The SUV is priced from 249,900 yuan ($34,150), slightly below Huawei’s Aito M5, which starts at 259,800 yuan. Tesla’s Model Y and Xpeng’s G9 SUV are slightly more expensive, starting at 263,900 yuan.
Jiyue 01 can process voice commands for functions such as opening windows or playing video. The service also works without an internet connection, Luo said.
The Jiyue 01’s journey to market was delayed as Beijing tightened the licensing process for electric vehicles. After initially offering subsidies and accelerating the skyrocketing growth of the industry, the government moderated its support and limited the number of new entrants.
In order to begin sales of the new SUV, Geely, which has a manufacturing permit, established a majority-owned Jiyue joint venture in August. Baidu has 35 percent.
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