Baidu has launched autonomous vehicle testing in London as part of its partnership with Lyft and its European ride-hailing platform Freenow. The first test vehicles, equipped with human safety drivers, began operating on the roads this Tuesday, in preparation for future commercial robotaxi operations.
The cooperation has been underway for nearly a year.
This test comes nearly a year after the two parties reached a cooperation agreement in Europe. According to the original plan, Baidu would use the Lyft platform to launch the Apollo Go RT6 Robotaxi, designed for autonomous driving, in several key European markets.
In the future, these vehicles will also be integrated with Freenow to provide ride-hailing services. Lyft acquired Freenow in 2025 for approximately $197 million, thereby entering the European ride-hailing market.
London is home to many Robotaxi enthusiasts
With several companies accelerating their deployments, London is becoming one of the most competitive cities for robotaxis in Europe. Waymo began testing autonomous vehicles there in April this year, also equipped with human safety drivers.
Uber and its self-driving partner Wayve also announced plans to launch a Robotaxi service in London this year. Uber has opened a registration list of interested users, but initially, a safety driver will be on duty in the vehicle.
It is expected to open to the public as early as 2027.
Baidu and Freenow stated that they expect to invite the public to hail rides through their platforms as early as 2027. However, neither party provided a more detailed timeline, and indicated that the official launch still depends on the progress of regulatory approvals.
Currently, dozens of test vehicles are operating in London's Brent district. Lyft and Freenow say they are still in ongoing communication with Transport for London (TfL), the UK Centre for Connected and Automated Vehicles (CCAV), and other organizations.
The UK is moving forward with pilot regulations.
The UK government is still developing regulations for autonomous driving and opened applications for autonomous driving pilot projects in May of this year. This project allows companies to test autonomous vehicles under government supervision, and the pace of commercialization will continue to be affected by policy developments.
During its official operation phase, Freenow by Lyft stated that it will adopt a "hybrid network" model, allowing traditional taxi and ride-hailing drivers to share the service with Robotaxi. This statement is similar to the operational approach previously announced by Uber in London.
