Ride-sharing platform Lyft teams up with Chinese AI giant Baidu, aiming to deploy autonomous taxis in Europe by 2026.
Lyft, the American ride-hailing giant, and Baidu, China's leading tech company, have announced a strategic partnership to introduce robotaxis to Europe, with a focus on Germany and the United Kingdom. The collaboration is pending regulatory approval [1][2][5].
According to the announcement made by Lyft on Monday, Baidu's sixth-generation Apollo Go autonomous vehicles (AVs) will be integrated into Lyft's ride-hailing app, offering autonomous rides to passengers [1][2][5]. This partnership marks a key step in Baidu’s international expansion and aligns with Lyft’s goal to expand aggressively in Europe following its acquisition of the German multi-mobility platform Free Now earlier in 2025 [1][3].
The plan includes scaling the autonomous vehicle fleet to thousands of Baidu’s Apollo Go AVs across Europe in the coming years, if local regulators approve the service. This partnership positions Lyft as a leading AV platform in Europe while showcasing Baidu's efforts to extend its autonomous mobility services beyond China [2][3].
Lyft envisions a hybrid network combining autonomous vehicles and human drivers to offer diverse options for riders. The company aims to prioritize Germany and the UK due to Free Now's existing presence and deep relationships with local regulators and taxi operators in these countries [1][3].
Baidu has also partnered with Uber to bring its autonomous cars to markets outside of the United States and China, focusing specifically on the Middle East and Asia [6]. The deployment of these AVs is a significant step towards a future where autonomous vehicles become a common sight on European roads.
[1] https://www.lyft.com/blog/lyft-and-baidu-partner-to-bring-robotaxis-to-europe/ [2] https://techcrunch.com/2025/09/13/lyft-baidu-robotaxis/ [3] https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/lyft-baidu-team-up-bring-robotaxis-europe-2025-09-13/ [4] (Not directly related to the current paragraph but was provided in the related bullet points and should not be repeated) [5] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-09-13/baidu-s-robotaxis-to-be-available-on-lyft-app-in-germany-uk-next-year [6] https://www.techinasia.com/baidu-uber-partner-autonomous-cars-middle-east-asia
Investing in real-estate and artificial intelligence might be profitable choices for Lyft, considering their expansion of autonomous vehicle services into Europe and potential partnerships with various tech companies, such as Baidu. As these autonomous vehicles demonstrate their success in densely populated countries like Germany and the UK, there may be opportunities to develop smart cities with integrated technology to improve transportation infrastructure.
