Baidu and Volkswagen have reached a strategic cooperation and the research and development project around autonomous parking has been launched

On November 2, the second Baidu Apollo Council was held in Xiong'an. On the same day, Baidu and Volkswagen reached a strategic cooperation. Volkswagen Group (China) joined the Baidu Apollo open platform as a member of the Council and announced the launch of the first cooperation project around autonomous parking Valet Parking. Baidu President Dr. Zhang Yaqin, Baidu Vice President and General Manager of Intelligent Driving Business Group Li Zhenyu, Volkswagen (China) Investment Co., Ltd. Executive Vice President and Head of Asian R&D Technology Center Mr. Sven Patuschka and other leaders from both sides attended the meeting. So far, Baidu Apollo ecosystem has added another general. The joint R&D project between the two parties will further strengthen the connection between Volkswagen and China, and will ignite a new engine for the global autonomous driving technology drive.

(Dr. Zhang Yaqin, President of Baidu, and Mr. Sven Patuschka, Head of R&D of Volkswagen Group (China) and Volkswagen Brand China, announced the cooperation)

Regarding this cooperation, Baidu President Dr. Zhang Yaqin said: "Baidu Apollo has always been committed to breaking the regional boundaries of autonomous driving technology, actively promoting cross-industry collaboration, and jointly promoting a more complete autonomous driving product matrix; Volkswagen has a wide influence in the Chinese market and even the global automotive market. We very much welcome Volkswagen to join the Baidu Apollo Council. Baidu will work with Volkswagen to unleash the maximum momentum of leading AI technology + strong car manufacturing capabilities, and jointly promote the development and innovation of the global autonomous driving industry.

Mr. Sven Patuschka, Executive Vice President of Volkswagen (China) Investment Co., Ltd. and Head of Asia R&D Technology Center, said: "Volkswagen is committed to promoting and accelerating the development of autonomous driving technology in China. Therefore, we believe that Apollo's joint open source model is a promising way to cooperate and address the many technical, regulatory and ethical challenges faced in the field of autonomous driving. At present, the first cooperation project between the two parties has been launched."

It is reported that the first joint research and development project between the two parties around autonomous parking will use the e-Golf model equipped with the Apollo system, and will use L3 and L4 level related autonomous driving technologies for joint development and testing. The two parties plan to obtain preliminary test results in the next few months, and further develop a series of user-related functions based on this. Baidu Apollo autonomous parking (Valet Parking) is an important commercial landing scenario for Baidu's autonomous driving products to the public. The current cooperative trial operation practice has proved that Valet Parking is suitable for more than 99% of parking spaces on the market, which can help operators reduce operating costs by 30%, and provide users with convenient one-stop services, saving 70% of the time for picking up and returning cars.

Volkswagen's products are sold in more than 150 markets around the world and are produced in more than 50 regions in 14 countries. In 2017, Volkswagen produced 6.23 million vehicles worldwide, including popular models such as Golf, Tiguan, Jetta, Santana and Passat. At the same time, Volkswagen is developing in coordination with the automotive industry and is currently expanding its activities in the field of innovative technology on a global scale. Electric mobility, smart mobility and digital transformation are the core of the brand's future strategy.

As the world's most dynamic open platform for autonomous driving, Baidu Apollo currently has 133 partners; more than 230,000 lines of code are open, and more than 11,000 developers recommend using Apollo's open code; autonomous driving solutions fully cover 9 major application scenarios, including logistics, engineering, sanitation, and shared travel. In the new era of artificial intelligence with AI technology blowout, Baidu Apollo will continue to "regard safety as the first priority" to accelerate the development of autonomous driving technology, collaborate with ecological partners to empower each other, achieve continuous win-win results, and fully demonstrate the innovative charm of autonomous driving.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.