Apollo Go Secures Hong Kong's First Driverless Testing Permit, Fully Autonomous Trials Set for Airport Island

The Hong Kong Transport Department has officially granted Baidu's Apollo Go the city's first driverless vehicle testing permit. With the permit, the company will begin fully driverless public road trials without a safety operator inside the vehicle on 27 July on roads within the Airport Island.

The trial marks a milestone as it is the world's first fully driverless public road test conducted under a right-hand-drive, left-hand traffic system. More than 70 countries and regions, representing over 2 billion people, operate under the same traffic configuration, meaning the results from Hong Kong could provide valuable reference data for the future deployment of autonomous driving technology across other right-hand-drive markets.

Apollo Go first received Hong Kong's autonomous vehicle pilot licence in November 2024. Since then, the company has continued to refine its autonomous driving system, expanding its test area on five separate occasions while overcoming four key technical challenges to adapt to Hong Kong's complex road network and unique traffic regulations.

Today, Apollo Go operates autonomous ride-hailing services in 27 cities worldwide, having completed more than 22 million rides. The latest approval for fully driverless public road testing in Hong Kong represents another important step in the company's global expansion and could further support the development of the city's smart mobility ecosystem.

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