Baidu's Apollo Go Launches Fully Driverless Commercial Ride-Hailing in Dubai with Dubai Taxi Company

As of February 2026, Apollo Go had completed over 20 million rides worldwide, with weekly rides peaking at more than 300,000 during Q4 2025, and its fleets had accumulated over 300 million autonomous kilometers, including more than 190 million kilometers of fully driverless operations. On April 1, 2026, Baidu announced that Apollo Go, in partnership with the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), had launched a fully driverless commercial ride-hailing service in Dubai via the Apollo Go app, the platform's first international app deployment. The launch is a step in Apollo Go's plan, announced in March 2025, to deploy a fleet of more than 1,000 autonomous vehicles in Dubai over the next few years. “Our partnership with DTC represents a new chapter for autonomous mobility in Dubai. By combining our cutting-edge technology with DTC's local expertise, and through the launch of the Apollo Go app, our first international app deployment, we are creating a safe, efficient and scalable ride-hailing service that sets a new standard for the region. We are proud to contribute to Dubai's vision for smart, future-ready transportation,” said Nan Yang, Vice President of Baidu and General Manager of Overseas Business Unit, Intelligent Driving Group. The service comes alongside a strategic collaboration with Dubai Taxi Company (DTC), the emirate's leading mobility service provider, which brings local operational expertise. DTC Group CEO Mansoor Rahma Alfalasi tied the rollout to the emirate's ambition of transforming 25% of all transportation trips into smart and driverless journeys by 2030, and said trials over the past few months had demonstrated the vehicles' readiness in terms of safety, reliability and operational efficiency. In January 2026, Apollo Go received Dubai's first-ever driverless testing permit for fully autonomous vehicles without a safety driver, enabling Baidu to operate fully autonomous ride-hailing services in Dubai in the first quarter of 2026. Also in January 2026, Baidu inaugurated the Apollo Go Park in Dubai, its first overseas operations and management hub, which supports the plans for a fleet of over 1,000 autonomous vehicles. The Apollo Go app is now available in Dubai, allowing residents and visitors to hail fully driverless rides.