China's Baidu robotaxi hits pedestrians, traps one person beneath car

A Baidu-operated robotaxi, an Apollo RT6 model, was involved in a serious accident on Yanjiang Road in Zhuzhou, China, where it struck two pedestrians, trapping one person beneath the vehicle. Witnesses and social media videos showed bystanders urgently lifting the car to assist the injured individual, who was wearing a helmet and appeared visibly hurt. Both victims, a man and a woman, were transported to Hunan Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine and remain in the ICU, though their exact conditions have not been disclosed. Local authorities confirmed the vehicle had just crossed a pedestrian crosswalk when the collision occurred and that emergency responders are actively investigating the incident. The robotaxi was part of Hello’s autonomous fleet in Zhuzhou, which began public road testing after regulatory approval in August, with about 20 to 30 self-driving vehicles operating on designated routes. Hello, an Alibaba-affiliated company expanding from bike-sharing and ride-hailing into autonomous mobility, plans to mass-produce its first