Baidu and Geely’s Joint Venture Jidu Automobile Tests SIMU Cars

On November 2nd, Jidu Automobile, a joint venture of Baidu and Geely, announced their progress in their automobile endeavor. Wang Weibao, the head of Jidu’s intelligent driving since August, said that their SIMU Car (simulated prototype car) is now under dynamic testing.

Xia Yiping, the CEO of Jidu, announced the completion of the development of SIMU Car through his Weibo feed, and planned to unveil the SIMU Car at the 2022 Beijing International Automotive Exhibition.

The joint venture’s vehicle development is comprised of four key prototypes, including the mule car (a concept prototype), SIMU Cars, engineering prototype cars and process prototype/trial production prototype cars. Only by completing prototype tests in all stages can the vehicles then be put into mass production.

Jidu cars feature the latest automated driving technology, and the comprehensive capability of Baidu Apollo. Moreover, it customizes design R&D in line with product requirements.

Wang Weibao, former CTO of Chinese unmanned delivery vehicle startup Neolix, said Jidu’s first vehicle will feature L4 automated driving capability and have the strongest computing power in the industry. Besides, the model is equipped with many sensors such as cameras, lidars, millimeter wave radars, etc., and is prepared for any sensor redundancy issues.

SEE ALSO: Baidu-Geely EV Venture Starts Intelligent Driving Solutions Based on SIMU Car

Wang Weibao emphasized that with Baidu‘s accumulation of over 18 million kilometers of automated driving road test data and the empowerment of full-stack AI technology, Jidu is making cars at a speed exceeding the industry average. Centralized intelligent driving is a rapid iteration on a weekly basis. By the end of 2021, SIMU Car could realize intelligent assisted driving in urban areas and high-speed areas while Jidu will accelerate the mass production and marketing of free-moving automobile robots in 2023.