Automobiles developed by Jidu Auto [Photo/WeChat account of Optics Valley of China]

The Baidu intelligent connected vehicle (ICV) strategic cooperation project and Jidu Wuhan headquarters project were signed into effect in the East Lake High-tech Development Zone (also known as Optics Valley of China, or OVC) on Jan 11, ushering in a new era for the local intelligent networked terminal industry.

The project funded by Baidu Inc will see the construction of an ICV innovation center, ICV demonstration zone, and intelligent driving applications, while the project funded by Jidu Auto will see the establishment of an R&D and value-added service headquarters in Wuhan.

As a powerful leading AI company, Baidu has ranked first in terms of the number of AI patents in China for five consecutive years, and it has more advanced autonomous driving patents than any other company in the world. Over the past decade, Baidu has invested more than 100 billion yuan ($14.65 billion) in research.

In the area of unmanned driving, Baidu's robotaxi has provided commercial autonomous driving services in Beijing, Shenzhen, Wuhan, Chongqing and other major cities in China, making the firm the largest autonomous driving service provider in the world.

After over 10 years of progress, OVC has collected about 200 enterprises in the new energy and intelligent networked sector, having formed a relatively complete industrial chain. It has layouts in high-definition maps, automotive semiconductors and smart manufacturing, and is home to TCL, Xiaomi, Huawei, Honeywell and other industry giants.