Overview
Baidu Apollo is the open autonomous driving platform released by Baidu in April 2017 and the external brand of Baidu's Intelligent Driving Group (IDG). It opens autonomous driving software and hardware solutions to developers and carmakers, and also carries Baidu's own robotaxi products and the Apollo Go mobility service.
History
Baidu started its autonomous driving research programme in 2013. In March 2017 it formed the Intelligent Driving Group (IDG) from the autonomous driving unit (L4), the intelligent vehicle unit (L3) and the connected car business; in April it launched the "Apollo programme" and opened the platform to developers worldwide. In 2017 the Ministry of Science and Technology announced that Baidu would host the national new-generation artificial intelligence open innovation platform for autonomous driving.
In May 2024 Baidu Apollo released the sixth-generation robotaxi Apollo RT6, whose vehicle cost was 60% lower than the previous generation. In January 2025 the Apollo software framework received the ASIL D functional safety certification. As of 7 February 2025 Baidu held more than 5,500 autonomous driving patent families, ranking first globally in high-level autonomous driving patent families for three consecutive years.