In brief: AutoX’s self-driving car business is excelling in China. In December, the company became the first in the world to deploy completely driverless vehicles on the streets of Shenzhen, China, and now, it has launched a full robotaxi service.
If you live in Shenzhen, you can take one of AutoX’s vehicles out for a spin right now. You’ll need to be approved for the company’s pilot program first, but once you are, hailing a robocab should be as easy as pulling up the AutoX app.
Of course, AutoX’s self-driving taxi service isn’t free — you’ll need to load up your account with “Anto card points,” whatever those are. These will help you pay for rides, though it’s unclear how much they will cost, or how many points will be deducted per ride.
If you do decide to sign up for the service, it might take a while for you to receive a response — AutoX says a staff member will have to reach out and activate your membership.
AutoX’s fleet of self-driving cars is made up of Chrysler Pacifica minivans, which you can see in action via the video above. From what we can tell, AutoX’s cars seem to tackle most basic obstacles, such as pedestrians and traffic lights, with relative ease.
However, it will take quite a bit more real-world testing before any of us can conclusively rate the company’s performance.