SAIC Mobility, the mobility arm of SAIC Motor Corp., has begun trial operation of a robotaxi fleet in Jiading, a suburban district of Shanghai, with the goal of commercializing robotaxi services in China in 2025.
The fleet comprises 20 R-badged Marvel full-electric crossovers produced by SAIC and fitted with L4 self-driving technology developed by Momenta, a Chinese technology startup whose investors include SAIC, General Motors, Toyota Motor Corp., Mercedes-Benz and Robert Bosch.
Starting Wednesday, riders in Shanghai can summon robotaxis from the fleet using a smart phone application from SAIC Mobility.
SAIC Mobility plans to significantly expand pilot operation of the robotaxis service in Jiading and other cities to validate potential commercial applications.
By the end of the year, it expects to double the size of the robotaxi fleet in Jiading and put 20 robotaxis in trial operation in Suzhou, a city 85 kilometers west of Jiading.
Next year, SAIC Mobility plans to launch a robotaxi fleet in the south China city of Shenzhen and bring the total number of robotaxis in operation in Shanghai, Suzhou and Shenzhen to 200, according to SAIC.
