Dollar Weakens Ahead of Expected Federal Reserve Rate Cut 
Asian Currencies Edge Higher as Markets Look to Fed Rate Cut; Rupee Steadies Near Record Lows 
Oil Prices Rise as Ukraine Targets Russian Energy Infrastructure 
Germany’s Economic Recovery Slows as Trade Tensions and Rising Costs Weigh on Growth 
Asian Markets Mixed as Fed Rate Cut Bets Grow and Japan’s Nikkei Leads Gains 
EU Prepares Antitrust Probe Into Meta’s AI Integration on WhatsApp 
Asian Markets Mixed as RBI Cuts Rates and BOJ Signals Possible Hike 
Rio Tinto Raises 2025 Copper Output Outlook as Oyu Tolgoi Expansion Accelerates 
Microchip Technology Boosts Q3 Outlook on Strong Bookings Momentum 
Europe Confronts Rising Competitive Pressure as China Accelerates Export-Led Growth 
Netflix’s Bid for Warner Bros Discovery Aims to Cut Streaming Costs and Reshape the Industry 
RBI Cuts Repo Rate to 5.25% as Inflation Cools and Growth Outlook Strengthens 
Trump Administration to Secure Equity Stake in Pat Gelsinger’s XLight Startup 
Tesla Faces 19% Drop in UK Registrations as Competition Intensifies 
Gold Prices Steady as Markets Await Key U.S. Data and Expected Fed Rate Cut 
Hikvision Challenges FCC Rule Tightening Restrictions on Chinese Telecom Equipment 
Anthropic Reportedly Taps Wilson Sonsini as It Prepares for a Potential 2026 IPO 
Baidu, Inc., a Chinese tech firm specializing in Internet-related services and products, and artificial intelligence, has unveiled its fully autonomous vehicle called Apollo RT6. The next-generation AV is an all-electric vehicle that can be operated without a steering wheel.
Baidu announced late last week that its autonomous vehicle has a removable steering wheel and is ready for production. The company said that it has plans of deploying the new Apollo RT6 units on the roads as robotaxis for the transport service that it will offer in China next year.
According to Reuters, the price of Baidu’s AV is ¥250,000 or about $37,031.55, and the company said this is much cheaper compared to the previous generation of the same vehicle, which cost ¥480,000.
The new next-generation AV features autonomous Level 4 capabilities that do not require human intervention. It is fitted with 8 lidars and 12 cameras which are used as detection systems. The lidar is said to work just like radars which utilize pulsed laser light instead of radio waves.
Baidu designed the Apollo RT6 autonomous vehicle, but it did not disclose which company would make its new model. In April, Tesla's CEO, Elon Musk, mentioned during an investors’ conference that it will be starting the mass production of its robotaxi without pedals or steering wheel in 2024.
“This massive cost reduction will enable us to deploy tens of thousands of AVs across China," Baidu's chief executive Robin Li said at the Baidu World conference. "We are moving towards a future where taking a robotaxi will be half the cost of taking a taxi today.”
"This massive cost reduction will enable us to deploy tens of thousands of AVs across China,” Baidu’s chief executive officer and co-founder, Robin Li, said in a statement during the company’s flagship tech conference called the Baidu World 2022. “We are moving towards a future where taking a robotaxi will be half the cost of taking a taxi today."
Finally, CNBC reported that Baidu’s Apollo RT6 has been scheduled to run on the roads around Beijing in the second half of 2023. The autonomous vehicle units will be operated under Baidu’s self-driving robotaxi business.
