Baidu Shares Rise on Robotaxi Progress in Dubai

By Jiahui Huang

Chinese tech company Baidu's shares were boosted by news its robotaxi business was granted 50 autonomous-driving test licenses in Dubai.

It's Hong Kong-listed shares gained 5.5% in early trade Thursday, outperforming the Hang Seng Tech Index's 1.5% rise.

Baidu's ADRs closed 5.8% higher in the U.S. overnight, bringing their year-to-date gains above 57%.

Investors were cheered after Baidu said late Wednesday that its robotaxi unit Apollo Go received Dubai's first autonomous driving trial permit, as well as 50 test licenses.

Apollo Go's 50-strong fleet of robotaxis has been conducting open-road trials in designated areas since August, the company said in a statement.

"Leveraging our autonomous driving technologies and fleet operation expertise, we will conduct all required testing and operations to enable seamless localization," said Liang Zhang, managing director of EMEA at Baidu Apollo.

Baidu aims to expand its fleet size to more than 1,000 fully driverless vehicles by 2028.

Chinese robotaxi firms have been expanding overseas in recent months as they look for new markets to grow their fleets. Pony AI, WeRide and Baidu's Apollo Go--considered the Big Three of China's robotaxi sector--all have a footprint in the Middle East because of how open the region is to to autonomous driving.

Nasdaq-listed WeRide partnered with ride-hailing giant Uber for its Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi services while Pony AI, which also trades on the U.S. index, is launching driverless taxi services in Dubai.

Dubai aims to have 25% of all transportation trips in the city be "smart" and driverless by 2030.

Write to Jiahui Huang at jiahui.huang@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 24, 2025 23:31 ET (03:31 GMT)