Cars of the Future Research and development of self-driven taxi booms in China, but large-scale commercial deployment is still far away
The slick, smart, self-driven cars we used to see only in science fiction movies are now a reality. On June 27, Didi Chuxing (Didi), a Chinese company providing chauffeur services, launched the trial of its autonomous driving services in Shanghai. Users of the Didi app can book a self-driven vehicle for a free trip on the designated 53.6-km roads in the metropolis’ Jiading District.
With continued policy incentives and technology that is more and more mature, the so-called Internet of Vehicles industry has entered an era of rapid development in
China, although large-scale commercialization will still take some time.
The integration of the Internet of Things with cars has given birth to the Internet of Vehicles, and vehicles equipped with this technology are called Intelligent Connected Vehicles (ICVS). They combine the Internet of Vehicles with smart vehicles, integrating communication and network technologies to exchange and share information about people, vehicles and even roads in order to ultimately make driving fully automatic.
With the growing commercial use of 5G, the development pace of ICVS is picking up speed. As such, the taxi industry is expected to be among the first to switch to fully autonomous driving.
Autonomous taxis
“It’s a truly wonderful experience! Even without a driver, Didi’s taxi runs smoothly, and it can also safely avoid pedestrians,” said a Shanghai resident who had tried the new service.
Didi safety-supervising staff are present in the self-driven vehicles to respond to emergencies and take control of the wheels if necessary. “This complies with
the requirements of China’s regulations on autonomous-driving tests,” said Meng Xing, COO of Didi Autonomous Driving.
Didi Technical Director Zhang Bo said the company would start by sending instructions to both human drivers and autonomous vehicles, since self-driven vehicles can only operate in certain designated areas. So far, Jiading District has designated 65 km of roads for self-driving tests, with full 5G coverage.
Didi is not the first Chinese company to foray into this promising field. On April 19, Baidu, China’s largest search engine, launched its own autonomous taxi service called Apollo Robotaxi on designated routes in Changsha, Hunan Province in Central China. Passengers can call any of the 45 Robotaxis available in real time for a free trial, making Baidu the first autonomous taxi service in China open to the public.
A significant first step
In 2020, Robotaxi, a concept that originated in Silicon Valley in the United States, gained momentum in China. Companies like Baidu, Weride, Didi and Amap announced their plans to enter this field one after the other.
Robotaxi services are already available in several Chinese cities such as Guangzhou, Changsha and Shanghai, while Beijing and Suzhou are getting ready to launch trials.
Waymo One, the world’s first Robotaxi service, was launched in the U.S. City of Phoenix in December 2018. The technology is supported by Alphabet, Google’s parent company.
In China, in September 2019, Baidu Apollo launched its trials of Robotaxi services in Changsha, marking an important step in this area. Other companies quickly followed suit in 2020.
This rapid development is fueled by China’s so-called “new infrastructure” construction. This year, the National Development and Reform Commission, China’s top macroeconomic planner, elaborated for the first time the scope of such new infrastructure.
“Among its seven areas, four are related to ICVS, including 5G, artificial intelligence, the construction of vehicle charging stations and big data centers,” Zhang Dezhao, COO of Chinese technology company Zhixingzhe, told China Automotive News.
Supporting policies have also played a role in accelerating the development of the autonomous vehicle sector. Earlier this year, China unveiled a plan to boost autonomous driving throughout the country. According to the plan, the country will achieve “large-scale production of vehicles capable of autonomous driving and marketing of high-level autonomous vehicles by 2025.”
In a further boost to the industry, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) launched classification standards for autonomous driving in China in March. These standards will be implemented from January 1, 2021.
According to the Society of Automotive Engineers, the classification of automation is divided into six levels ranging from L0 to L5 (L5 meaning full automation). In China, the level is generally around L3. According to industry insiders, the current Robotaxi technology has now reached L4 level.
MIIT Minister Miao Wei said in 2020, the value of Chinese ICV market could reach more than 100 billion yuan ($14 billion). The ministry estimates that the market will experience rapid development for at least 20 years. By 2035, it will account for around 25 percent of the global new car market.
However, autonomous driving is still far from large-scale commercialization in China. Self-driving without safety supervisors on board is not allowed. The construction of necessary infrastructure has just started and the cars’ ability to cope with complex road conditions is still limited. Autonomous cars are only allowed in restricted areas, under certain weather conditions and during given hours. They are required to maintain a relatively low speed, which makes self-driving less practical. The cost of the cars is also very high. Meng from Didi Autonomous Driving said the price of a Didi Robotaxi is more than 1 million yuan ($140,000).
Didi acknowledges that these are all major issues. “Autonomous driving will require at least 10 years of continuous investment to become fully mature in technical, commercial, regulatory and legal terms. We also have to prepare for coming difficulties and challenges, but our direction is clear and firm,” said Cheng Wei, founder and CEO of Didi.
In the meantime, many people are more than willing to experiment with this new technology. Jia Yin, a teacher in his 60s living in Shanghai, saw the live broadcast of Didi’s self-driving cars and was so excited that he decided to book a seat to try it out. The next day, Jia drove for more than an hour in his own car to have a go at an autonomous car for 10 minutes. “It’s quite fun,” he said as he got out of the car. “However, braking and acceleration are still not very smooth.” CA
In July, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security added livestreaming sales host to the list of officially approved professions. This recognition came with various measures to facilitate the training of new professionals.
University-business cooperation
Fan is just a beginner, but that did not stop him from making his mark. He achieved sales worth around 300,000 yuan ($42,780) on his fourth day of livestreaming.
“Our teachers teach us theories in the classroom, but we also need to put them into practice” he told news website Zgyww.cn.
In fact, his school has been running livestreaming e-commerce courses since 2017. It may seem simple, but it is not enough just to shout “buy” to have success in this field. One needs a wide range of knowledge, such as how to select products, how to prepare what to say, how to operate and manage the business, among other things. Each aspect is a specialty of its own and each member of the livestreaming team must find its place in this chain, according to insiders.
After three years of reform, the courses have been greatly improved and are now more systematic. Classes in the livestreaming studio look like a scene from a wholesale market: Students are doing everything they can to entice fans to buy their products.
“From a business perspective, they need more hosts to sell their products online,” said Zhao Chimin, an official with the SME Business School at Alibaba Group, a Chinese e-commerce giant.
In May, a livestreaming training project was launched by YICC and Alibaba, attracting more than 280 Chinese and foreign students. Three students from Malaysia, Peru and Guatemala also attended the training. “The courses are rich in content and useful. I want to master the technique in order to share our products with Chinese consumers,” said Ye Yifan, a student from Malaysia preferred to be known by his Chinese name.
According to statistics from the Human Resources and Social Security Bureau of Yiwu, more than 500,000 people work in e-commerce in the city. From January to May, more than 54,000 livestreams were made, with sales worth over 8.09 billion yuan ($1.15 billion).
With increased demand and good job prospects, the YICC E-commerce Livestreaming School opened on June 15, the first of its kind in the province, following the creation of another one in Yangzhou in Jiangsu Province, east China, the first in the country. The school has already signed training cooperation contracts with three Chinese companies.
The graduates of the livestreaming school are very popular in the job market, and their wages are some of the highest among new graduates. “Our goal is not to train famous influencers on the Internet, but students who are able to find their own place in the chain of the livestreaming industry,” said Chen Xuhua, Dean of the E-commerce Department of the school.
Attracting more and better
According to iimedia Research, a market consultancy company, the value of the livestreaming industry in 2019 amounted to 433.8 billion yuan ($61.9 billion) in China. The number of livestreaming viewers would be around 524 million in 2020, with a market volume of more than 900 billion yuan ($128 billion). This explains why many local governments have taken steps to attract more professionals to further promote this sector recently.
The Shanghai Municipal Government, among others, has implemented a series of policies to reduce or eliminate rents and taxes, facilitate hukou (household registration) acquisition, and provide training for livestreaming professionals. At the end of June, Li Jiaqi, China’s most famous livestreaming host, was given Shanghai hukou, which is extremely difficult to acquire, making headlines all over the Internet.
In Guangzhou, Guangdong Province in south China, livestreaming professionals can receive a grant worth 500,000 yuan ($71,300) when they buy houses. They also have priority to move into apartments reserved for young talents and enjoy preferential policies for their children’s education.
“At a time when the economy is slowing down, livestreaming sales are growing rapidly against all odds. This will stimulate the economy and improve business performance,” said Li Yougang, Deputy Director of the Guangzhou Livestreaming E-commerce Association Preparation Group.
However, several problems are still hampering the sector, such as the spread of false information and the difficulty of protecting consumers’ rights. In June, the China General Chamber of Commerce drafted standards for industry operations, services and assessment, which regulate, among other things, product quality and the conduct of hosts. On July 1, the standards of conduct for livestreaming sales released by the China Advertising Association went into effect.
As the industry becomes more and more standardized, trust in hosts and practitioners will gradually increase. After a few days of hands-on practice, Fan feels he might have become addicted to this emerging profession. “I think the prospect of livestreaming is promising, so I will continue on this path in the future,” he said. CA