A driverless ride-hailing car operated by Chinese tech giant Baidu was involved in an incident with a pedestrian in the city of Wuhan. The incident occurred when the car reportedly began moving as the light turned green and had minor contact with the pedestrian who was crossing against the light. The pedestrian was taken to a hospital for examination, which revealed no obvious external injuries.
The incident has sparked discussions about the challenges that autonomous driving technology faces in complex situations. Experts have noted that autonomous vehicles may have limitations when dealing with unconventional behavior, such as pedestrians or other vehicles violating traffic laws.
Images shared online show the driverless car with its rooftop sensors, and social media comments largely supported Baidu, highlighting that the pedestrian had broken the law by crossing against the light.
Baidu, a Beijing-based search-engine and artificial intelligence company, is a leader in autonomous driving development in China. The company's largest driverless taxi operation, known as Apollo Go, operates in Wuhan with a fleet of 300 cars. The service also runs in limited parts of Beijing, Shenzhen, and Chongqing.
In May, Baidu launched the sixth-generation of its driverless taxi, reducing the unit cost to under $30,000. This incident underscores the ongoing advancements and challenges in the field of autonomous driving technology.
