Baidu’s Apollo Go Robotaxis Begin London Testing Through Lyft’s Freenow

Baidu’s Apollo Go has started testing its sixth-generation RT6 robotaxis on London roads with Freenow by Lyft. The programme is currently a supervised, pre-commercial trial in Brent—not a driverless taxi service—and the companies are targeting public rides in 2027 only if the required regulatory approvals are secured. 1

The launch matters because it connects a major Chinese autonomous-driving operator with Lyft’s European mobility network. It also adds another competitor to London’s emerging robotaxi market, alongside Uber and Wayve’s supervised vehicle programme and Waymo’s separate testing in the capital.

What Baidu is testing in London

The initial test area is Brent, a borough in west and north-west London. The routes include a mixture of urban and suburban driving conditions, giving Apollo Go an opportunity to evaluate its vehicles in a dense, left-hand-traffic environment rather than in a restricted private facility. 110

The vehicles are Baidu’s Apollo Go RT6 robotaxis, described as the platform’s sixth-generation model. Safety operators remain onboard during this phase, so the vehicles are not yet operating as fully driverless taxis and there is no public passenger service in the current trial. 12

The companies have not announced a confirmed public-launch date. Their stated ambition is to begin carrying public riders in 2027, subject to approval from the relevant UK authorities. That makes 2027 a target window, not a guarantee. 19

How Lyft and Freenow fit into the programme

Apollo Go supplies the autonomous-driving and robotaxi operation, while Freenow is expected to provide the mobility-platform relationship with riders. In practical terms, the proposed service would use Freenow to connect passengers with Apollo Go vehicles rather than requiring Baidu to build a separate consumer taxi network in London. 116

That arrangement follows Lyft’s acquisition of Freenow from BMW Group and Mercedes-Benz Mobility. Lyft announced the deal at approximately €175 million, or $197 million, in April 2025; it was completed later that year and represented Lyft’s expansion into Europe beyond its North American base.

Freenow’s proposed operating model is hybrid. Robotaxis would complement the app’s existing human-driver taxi and private-hire network instead of immediately replacing it. This could allow the platform to use different vehicle types according to operating conditions, demand and regulatory permissions, but the hybrid model remains a plan for the service rather than an already-launched public offering. 5614

Why the 2027 target is more than a product roadmap

The UK already permits automated-vehicle trials on public roads when they comply with UK law and the government’s trialling code. The code distinguishes these supervised trials from later forms of commercial deployment without a safety driver.

The next stage depends on the country’s newer automated-vehicle framework. The Automated Vehicles Act 2024 establishes legal responsibilities for authorised self-driving systems, including the designation of an “authorised self-driving entity” for an authorised vehicle.

The government is also creating an automated-passenger-services permitting route for commercial services that operate without a human driver. The proposed scheme is intended to provide a legal path for passenger services such as taxi-, private-hire- and bus-like operations, while detailed implementation continues.

Some related 2026 regulations are scheduled to take effect on January 7, 2027. Those measures are part of the wider framework, but their existence does not automatically approve Baidu’s London service. Each operator and vehicle deployment would still need to satisfy the applicable authorisation, safety and operating requirements.

How Baidu compares with Uber, Wayve and Waymo

Uber and Wayve: further along on supervised passenger rides

Uber’s London partnership with British autonomous-driving company Wayve has reached a more advanced stage in one specific respect: Transport for London granted private-hire vehicle licences to a number of Wayve-equipped vehicles. The licences allow supervised passenger operations, with a qualified human driver remaining present and responsible for the vehicle. 17

Wayve’s vehicles are all-electric Ford Mustang Mach-Es equipped with the Wayve AI Driver and surrounding cameras and radar. That differs from Baidu’s purpose-built Apollo Go RT6 robotaxis. 19

However, a private-hire licence is not the same as permission for unrestricted driverless operation. Reports in August said Uber and Wayve’s planned London rollout faced regulatory and technical delays, showing how much can still change between vehicle licensing, supervised trips and a fully driverless service. 17

Waymo: separate London testing, not the same local partnership

Waymo has also been testing autonomous vehicles in London with human safety operators, according to reporting. Those tests are separate from Baidu’s Freenow partnership and from Uber’s local relationship with Wayve. 312

The available reporting supports the existence of Waymo testing in central London, but the evidence provided here is not sufficient to establish every detail of the programme’s timing or scope. The exact claim that the trials began in April should therefore be treated cautiously rather than presented as a settled fact.

What Baidu’s London entry signals

Baidu’s trial is strategically important even before passengers can book a ride. It tests whether Apollo Go’s purpose-built vehicles and operating model can adapt to London’s traffic, road layout and regulatory environment. It also gives Lyft a way to participate in autonomous mobility in Europe through a taxi-focused platform it already owns.

For London, the more significant development is the appearance of several different routes to the same market:

• Baidu is testing RT6 robotaxis with onboard safety operators in Brent through Freenow.
• Uber and Wayve have licences for supervised passenger operations, although their rollout has faced delays.
• Waymo is conducting separate supervised testing in the capital.

The immediate takeaway is that London’s robotaxi race has begun, but the commercial finish line is still regulatory. Baidu’s 2027 ambition should be read as a conditional plan: the vehicles must move from supervised testing to an authorised passenger service before the public can rely on them as driverless taxis.