16 OCT 2026 — Hong Kong's first public self-driving car rides start next week. Baidu's Apollo Go will run free trial rides in Tung Chung from 21 October to 3 November, carrying more than 1,000 people on a short loop near the airport, the South China Morning Post reported.
Under the licence terms Hong Kong's Transport Department published in July, cars on this route still carry a backup operator on board. That makes the next two weeks a public showcase, not a launch.
What riders will get
Each ride lasts about 15 minutes over a 5.1km loop starting at Yat Tung Estate, with no stops along the way. According to DotDotNews, each car takes up to two passengers, who must be taller than 1.35 metres, and the front passenger seat is off-limits. District offices hand out tickets from 16 October, and only holders of a physical ticket can ride.
Baidu is not charging for these rides. "We also hope to gather real-world feedback to drive the adoption of the technology in Hong Kong, laying a solid foundation for our autonomous fleet to join the city's public transport system and move towards regular operations," Iris Wong Man-hei, a senior manager in Baidu's intelligent driving group, told the SCMP. Riders will be asked to fill in questionnaires.
How Hong Kong licenses the cars
Hong Kong regulates the tests through pilot licences under its Road Traffic (Autonomous Vehicles) Regulation, widening them in steps. In February the Transport Department extended a trial on Airport Island to Tung Chung and Sunny Bay. In July it approved fully driverless tests on Airport Island, with no one on board, and added remote backup operators on the Tung Chung and Sunny Bay routes on top of the in-vehicle ones.
Who holds the licence
The department's releases do not name the licence holder. DotDotNews reports that Apollo Go was the first company in Hong Kong to obtain a pilot licence. On 10 October the department's autonomous vehicle working group rode the Tung Chung route and said the trial had "proceeded largely smoothly". It also said the department and the operator would brief the Islands District Council on the public events.
Where Hong Kong sits
Hong Kong's step-by-step approach looks slow next to other places. Tesla started rides with no safety monitor in Miami in July, and Pony.ai has signed up to put 2,000 robotaxis in five European cities with Uber. London's plans have slipped while Transport for London's guidance stayed unpublished. Hong Kong's government says it wants "driverless, scaled-up and commercialised" operations, but each step so far has needed a new approval.
What to watch
The questionnaires matter because the next step is a licence decision, not a sales figure. What would move Hong Kong closer to paid robotaxis is whether the department allows driverless operation beyond Airport Island and whether it lets passengers ride outside a ticketed event. Neither has been announced.
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