via TechCrunch
Lyft and Baidu Enter London’s Robotaxi Battleground as Testing Begins
Chinese tech giant Baidu has started testing autonomous vehicles in London as part of its strategic partnership with Lyft and Freenow, the German taxi and multi-mobility app now owned by Lyft. Baidu joins a growing list of companies testing self-driving technology in the UK ahead of commercial robotaxi deployments in the region.
The testing, which began Tuesday with human safety operators onboard, comes nearly a year after Lyft and Baidu announced a partnership to deploy Baidu’s purpose-built Apollo Go RT6 robotaxi across key European markets via the Lyft platform. The vehicles will eventually be available through Freenow, which Lyft acquired in 2025 for approximately $197 million, gaining a foothold in Europe’s competitive ride-hailing market.
London is shaping up to be a key battleground for autonomous ride-hailing. In April, Waymo began testing its autonomous vehicles with human safety operators in the city. Uber and its self-driving tech partner, Wayve, have also announced plans to launch a robotaxi service in London later this year, initially with safety operators before moving to fully driverless operations. Customers can already sign up for an interest list.
Baidu and Freenow by Lyft (the rebranded service) said they expect to invite the public to hail their robotaxis in 2027, though they did not provide a more precise timeline, noting the launch will depend on regulatory approval.
For now, dozens of test vehicles will operate within London’s Borough of Brent. Lyft and Freenow said they are in ongoing discussions with safety and city officials, including Transport for London (TfL) and the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV). The UK government is developing autonomous vehicle regulations and opened applications in May for an AV pilot program that allows companies to test self-driving vehicles under government oversight.
When the service does launch, Freenow by Lyft said it will operate a hybrid network—using the same language rival Uber has employed—meaning human drivers operating taxis and private-hire vehicles will work alongside robotaxis.
“As a platform with deep roots in the taxi industry, our priority is ensuring that autonomous technology supports the professional drivers who keep London moving,” said Thomas Zimmermann, CEO of Freenow by Lyft, in a statement.