Apollo Go secures Dubai's first fully driverless testing permit

Baidu Inc's autonomous ride-hailing service Apollo Go received a fully driverless testing permit from the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) of Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, on Tuesday, becoming the first and only company authorized to conduct fully unmanned autonomous vehicle tests in the city.

The move not only marks the official recognition of Chinese autonomous driving technology by Dubai's authorities, but also lays a solid foundation for Apollo Go to launch fully driverless commercial operations in the first quarter of 2026.

According to the plan, Apollo Go's fully autonomous fleet in Dubai will be expanded to more than 1,000 vehicles.

The company has also launched its first overseas integrated autonomous driving operations hub in Dubai. The facility integrates core functions like daily vehicle operations, maintenance and upgrades, safety management, and personnel training—making it the first intelligent hub in the Middle East capable of supporting large-scale operations of a fully driverless fleet.

The hub provides technical and operational support for fully unmanned testing and closely aligns with Dubai's Vision 2030, which aims to convert 25 percent of its transportation to autonomous operations by 2030.

Wang Yunpeng, vice-president of Baidu and president of the company's intelligent driving group, said with world-class transportation infrastructure, a highly forward-looking policy environment, and strong public acceptance of innovative technologies, Dubai offers ideal conditions for the large-scale deployment of autonomous driving.

"We look forward to deepening strategic collaboration with the RTA and local partners to help build Dubai's intelligent transportation system through safe, efficient, and sustainable autonomous mobility services, and to support Dubai's ambition to become a global benchmark for smart transportation innovation," Wang said.

Apollo Go signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the RTA in March to launch autonomous driving testing and services in the city. In July, it was granted Dubai's autonomous driving testing license and established the city's first large-scale testing fleet, with plans to deploy more than 1,000 fully driverless vehicles in Dubai in the future.