Hesai Technology has said it has been selected by Chinese internet tech giant Baidu to be the exclusive long-range LiDAR supplier for its next-generation robotaxi platform Yichi 06.
Baidu is planning to be one of the world’s largest robotaxi service providers.
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According to industry analysts, this LiDAR deal is worth an estimated $200-300 million based on Baidu’s plans to deploy 100,000 robotaxi vehicles in China.
It is expected to be the first widespread application of robotaxi in the Chinese market.
Baidu’s Apollo Go 5th generation robotaxis, which are currently in operation in Wuhan and other cities in China, already use Hesai’s Pandar series high-performance LiDAR.
This year, the sixth-generation Apollo Go autonomous vehicles will also be deployed to the market.
According to Baidu, these vehicles’ cost has dropped by 60% compared with the previous generation, to a price-point of around $28,500.
David Li, CEO and Co-Founder of Hesai said: “The autonomous driving industry has rapidly evolved in recent years and today’s surge of autonomous driving in China is a testament to the breakthroughs we’ve made in smart driving.”
Hesai has already established a strong global business presence in the US, Europe and Asia, with customers spanning over 40 countries, extending support and engineering resources across the globe to facilitate close collaboration with customers.
