China's Baidu launches Apollo World for robotaxi road simulation

Baidu introduced an AI system called Apollo World at its AI Day in Shenzhen to generate virtual driving environments for training its Apollo Go robotaxis. Baidu says the system can simulate up to 100,000 kilometers, or 62,000 miles, of driving per day, which it compares to about three years of road testing by one self-driving car with a safety driver; the comparison is Baidu's own and covers simulated driving only. Baidu said it is already using Apollo World to train Apollo Go vehicles for use in other countries. Apollo Go is described as China's largest robotaxi operator. The system uses data from real road tests and live camera and lidar sensor streams to model changing roads and predict possible events.