Uber, Lyft Tie Up With Baidu for U.K. Robotaxi Tests Next Year

By Kimberley Kao

Baidu is teaming up with ride-hailing platforms Uber Technologies and Lyft to begin trials for its self-driving vehicles in the U.K., as the race to introduce robotaxis continues to intensify.

Uber on Monday said it will begin a pilot program in London with Baidu's robotaxi unit, Apollo Go, in the first half of 2026, under the U.K.'s plan to start trials for self-driving vehicles. The companies first announced their partnership to deploy self-driving cars globally on Uber's platform in July.

This "marks Apollo Go's foray into another major right-hand drive market, building on the validated experience gained from expanding testing in Hong Kong since receiving the city's first permit in late 2024," Baidu said in a post on X.

Separately, Lyft Chief Executive David Risher said the company will begin testing in London with dozens of Apollo Go RT6 vehicles next year, pending regulatory approval, as part of its collaboration with Baidu announced earlier this year.

It plans to scale to hundreds from there, Risher said on X, describing the vehicles as "purpose-built for rideshare."

Baidu's Apollo Go currently leads the global autonomous-driving charge, having completed more than 17 million rides across 22 cities as of November.

The announcements come as robotaxi rollouts are accelerating around the world, with companies competing to get a head start in regions like Asia and Europe.

In October, Waymo, Alphabet's self-driving car company, partnered with Uber-backed ride-hailing company Moove to enter the U.K. market next year. Waymo began testing its driverless vehicles in London this month.

Chinese robotaxi companies are entering a large-scale commercialization stage, with continuing efforts to expand overseas, especially in the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

Chinese autonomous-driving technology company Momenta said this month that it is collaborating with ride-hailing platform Grab to expand its robotaxi services into Southeast Asia.

WeRide and Pony AI already have autonomous-driving shuttles for testing in parts of Singapore. Baidu also told The Wall Street Journal that it would enter the Singapore and Malaysia markets by the end of this year.

Write to Kimberley Kao at kimberley.kao@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 22, 2025 02:38 ET (07:38 GMT)