TL;DR:
- Geely and Baidu jointly launched JiYue 01 ROBOCAR in China.
- It’s the world’s first consumer vehicle with Baidu’s Level 4 autonomous driving tech.
- JiYue’s EV offers impressive battery options, rapid recharging, and powerful motor configurations.
- Qualcomm’s intelligent vehicle cockpit chip powers the AI system SIMO with rapid speech recognition.
- A unique voice-activated parking feature sets it apart.
- Equipped with NVIDIA DRIVE Orin chips and advanced cameras for autonomous driving.
- Expansion plans include covering 90% of China’s highways and 200+ cities by 2024.
Main AI News:
In a remarkable culmination of their business partnership, Geely and Baidu have launched the JiYue 01 ROBOCAR, a groundbreaking autonomous electric vehicle (EV) in China. This momentous release follows the successful restructuring of their collaboration, with the 01 ROBOCAR standing as the world’s premier consumer vehicle to feature Baidu’s comprehensive Apollo suite of Level 4 autonomous driving solutions.
The inception of this innovative venture can be traced back to January 2021 when Baidu ventured beyond software development into physical EV production, partnering with Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, known as Geely. The JIDU marque was officially born in March of the same year, backed by $300 million in startup capital, followed by an additional $400 million in Series A funding from Baidu in January 2022.
JIDU’s primary goal was to democratize autonomous driving and advance human-machine interaction technologies, particularly exemplified by its ROBO-01 concept introduced in early 2022. This concept featured a unique internal voice interaction system, fostering seamless communication between the vehicle, the driver, and the environment.
In a significant development this past August, Geely assumed a more prominent role in JIDU, alongside an increased financial stake. Previously, Geely held a 45% minority stake in JIDU, with Baidu owning 55%. However, with the formation of the JiYue marque, Geely now possesses a controlling 65% stake, overseeing the brand within its corporate umbrella, while Baidu retains a 35% minority interest.
Crucially, JIDU will continue to operate independently as a “technology facilitator” for its successor, JiYue. The latter inherits not only the former’s name and logo but also the highly anticipated 01 ROBOCAR, which made its official debut today.
Source: electrek.co
JiYue’s 01 ROBOCAR Takes Center Stage in China
The launch of the 01 ROBOCAR marks a significant milestone in the automotive world, a journey we have been following closely for over two years since its inception as a mere concept. JiYue showcased its AI-centric EV at the prestigious ROBODAY 2023 event held in Shanghai.
Following this spectacular event, we have gained insights into the exciting features awaiting Chinese consumers once deliveries commence. Firstly, the 01 ROBOCAR is built on Geely’s renowned Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA) platform, offering two battery options: 71.4kWh and 100kWh, resulting in impressive CLTC ranges of 550km (342 miles) and 720km (447 miles), respectively. Additionally, the EV boasts rapid recharging capabilities, capable of replenishing from 10% to 80% charge in under 30 minutes when using a DC fast charger.
The powertrain options come in single and dual motor configurations, delivering power outputs of 200kW or a formidable 400kW. The vehicle accelerates from 0-100km/hr (0-62 mph) in a mere 3.8 seconds. A notable feature is the integration of Qualcomm’s 8295 intelligent vehicle cockpit chip, a first in mass production models, powering JiYue’s intelligent vehicle AI partner, SIMO. This collaboration offers exceptional speech recognition speed, clocking in at a rapid 500ms, covering a wide array of scenarios, both within and outside the vehicle.
SIMO’s capabilities extend to multi-modal interactions, encompassing voice commands, gestures, and visual cues, enhancing personalization for users. Supported by Baidu’s integrated AI system, Ernie Bot, SIMO is poised to evolve, enhancing logical reasoning and strategic planning capabilities.
The JiYue 01 ROBOCAR boasts a world-first feature: voice-activated/controlled parking outside the vehicle. Users can effortlessly command the ROBOCAR JiYue 01 to employ its AVP autonomous valet parking function, whether it’s parking itself or picking up passengers in indoor or outdoor parking lots, all from a distance of up to 2km.
Further enhancing its autonomous capabilities, the 01 ROBOCAR is equipped with NVIDIA DRIVE Orin autonomous drive chips and a vision-centric intelligent drive architecture, boasting 11 HD cameras, 12 ultrasonic radars, and 5-millimeter wave radars, powering the EV’s ROBO Drive Max feature.
ROBO Drive Max introduces a monthly subscription model, granting ROBOCAR owners access to the EV’s Point to Point (PPA) navigation assistance, enabling fully-autonomous lane changes, highway on and off-ramp maneuvers, multi-lane obstacle avoidance, zebra crossing and traffic light recognition, pedestrian prioritization, unprotected left turns, and avoidance of non-motorized vehicles.
JiYue has disclosed that the 01 ROBOCAR’s autonomous capabilities extend to 90% of China’s highways and cover three major urban centers: Hangzhou, Beijing, and Shanghai, with plans to expand to over 200 additional cities in China by 2024.
As the JiYue 01 ROBOCAR officially launches, eager customers can anticipate deliveries commencing shortly, although pricing details have yet to be unveiled. Looking ahead, the marque is committed to developing its second model, initially teased as the ROBO-2 in December.
Source: electrek.co
Conclusion:
The launch of the JiYue 01 ROBOCAR signifies a significant advancement in the autonomous EV market, with cutting-edge features like voice-activated parking, advanced AI systems, and extensive autonomous capabilities. Geely and Baidu’s collaboration is poised to shape the future of autonomous mobility and set new industry standards, providing consumers with innovative, efficient, and safer transportation options.
