Baidu Intelligent Vehicle and BAIC Motor Corporation Ltd., have today come under a two-fold strategic partnership at CES 2017 in order to produce and promote advanced intelligent vehicle technology.

One of the main aims of this partnership is to bring in vehicles equipped with Level 3 autonomy on roads by end of 2017 while the other one is to launch automobiles for BAIC Motor Corporation Ltd. furnished with telematics solutions provided by Baidu by mid-2016.

Baidu Intelligent Vehicle is a division of Chinese search giant Baidu, Inc. and working towards enhancing advanced intelligent in traditional vehicles. Previously, the company partnered with BMW but parted ways with them and offered test drives using various independent driving prototypes developed separately with Chinese automakers including BAIC Motor Corp. The test autonomous cars navigated without any difficulty — overtaking vehicles and avoiding bicycles at various speeds.

On joining hands with BAIC, Baidu President Dr. Yaqin Zhang said,

Intelligent vehicle technology is an increasingly important area for Baidu, and we are delighted to be partnering with BAIC, one of the most active automobile manufacturers worldwide in promoting smart software. We look forward to working together to establish a smart vehicle ecosystem to support this important industry trend.

Speaking on Level 3 Autonomy, the technology requires human intervention at some occasions, though it now dismisses the need for active monitoring. As per the agreement, along with level 3 autonomy, the cars will also be equipped with high definition (HD) maps and Learning Maps. Moreover, Baidu will deliver BAIC intelligent vehicle OEM solutions including CarLife, CoDriver, and MapAuto for exploring level 3 autonomy further. To boost up the endeavors, both the signers of

Moreover, Baidu has plans to deliver BAIC intelligent vehicle OEM solutions including CarLife, CoDriver, and MapAuto for exploring level 3 autonomy further. To boost the endeavors, both have agreed to co-launch a research lab wherein applications of advanced intelligent vehicle technology will be implemented on a mass scale.

Talking about the same, Feng Li, President for BAIC, says,

The future of the automobile industry lies in the deep integration and synergistic innovation between traditional automobile manufacturers and Internet companies. Our strategic partnership with Baidu will help upgrade the intelligent technology capabilities of both companies, while establishing a model for development in the smart vehicle industry.

The company also revealed that a BAIC-built model equipped with Baidu’s tech will be unveiled at the Shanghai Auto Show in April. The self-driving car team formed by Baidu in Silicon Valley back in April 2016 will be employed under the project by end of this year. The company also has a partnership with Nvidia, under which it has been testing its autonomous vehicles in eastern Chinese cities including Wuhu and Shanghai. It has also secured a permit from the California DMV — which snubbed Uber’s autonomous tests — allowing Baidu to test its self-driving car technologies on public roads.

Apart from Baidu’s progress in autonomous driving, various tech giants as well as automobile manufacturers are striving towards the same ubiquity. Recently, Nissan announced that it’ll release an upgraded second generation variant of its electric vehicle, Leaf to be powered by its ProPilot technology. Microsoft also joined the club by revealing its Azure-based cloud platform that’ll help automakers deliver a next-generation driving experience. Hence, there is a lot to expect in 2017 with regards to autonomous technology.