Chinese internet giant Baidu is working on self-driving car

Following Google, the Chinese internet company Baidu is working on a self-driving car. According to Baidu, the car can make decisions while driving, but the driver remains in control of the car.

The plans were outlined by Baidu, which has a popular search engine in China, in an interview with The Next Web. With a self-driving car, Baidu seems to be following in Google’s footsteps, but the company states that it has its own philosophy. For example, Baidu does not see the autonomous car as a replacement for the driver, but rather as a tool.

According to Baidu CEO Kai Yu, the self-driving car can best be compared to a horse: just like a horse, the car can drive itself and make decisions, but if the driver wants to regain control of the car, then that is possible, according to Yu. According to Baidu, the most important aspect of the self-driving car is that it increases road safety.

Baidu expects to be able to send the first prototypes of the self-driving car on the road in 2015. The company did not specify what stage of development it is in and no images have been released yet.