Chinese Tesla rival Xpeng steers clear of robotaxis, says self-driving trucks more likely to succeed
- It is difficult for self-driving systems to replace human drivers, especially in densely populated cities, Xpeng’s head of autonomous driving says
- Self-driving long-haul trucks and robots handling last-mile deliveries are more likely to be successfully automated, according to Xinzhou Wu
Major Chinese self-driving companies such as Baidu, Didi Chuxing, WeRide and AutoX have all recently launched robotaxi services in various cities, but the head of autonomous driving at Xpeng Motors is less bullish on the prospect.
“They have to make a robot driver completely beat a human driver to be able to generate value for the society, which is pretty tough,” said Xpeng vice-president Xinzhou Wu, speaking to the media on Tuesday. He added that drivers and taxi fares were more affordable in China than in Western markets, making it harder to argue for robotaxis from a cost perspective.
Another factor, Wu said, was that robotaxis were more likely to make money in densely populated cities rather than in suburbs, but the traffic conditions in such environments were also more challenging.
“Truck deliveries always happens on the highway, which is a much more structured environment … [for delivery robots] the environment is also sophisticated and difficult, but because the speed is lower the risk is lower as well.”
The promise of a driverless future has drawn billions of dollars of investment globally and is becoming one of the key sectors in artificial intelligence, an industry where both China and the US are seeking supremacy.