Baidu robotaxis freeze in China’s Wuhan, sparking flurry of police calls

BEIJING - A number of Baidu’s Apollo Go robotaxis suddenly stopped on the streets of China’s Wuhan city on March 31, leaving passengers stranded and raising concerns about the safety and reliability of autonomous driving technology.

Wuhan police received multiple reports of Apollo Go vehicles stuck in the middle of roads and unable to move, authorities said in a Weibo statement. Officers worked with Baidu employees to respond to the situation, they added.

It’s unclear how many vehicles were affected, but police said a preliminary assessment indicates the problem was due to a system fault. Passengers were able to exit the cars safely, and no one was hurt.

Baidu didn’t immediately respond to an e-mailed request for comment. Apollo Go is the largest robotaxi provider in China, with hundreds of vehicles in more than a dozen cities, and is ramping up an international expansion. 

The system malfunction marks a rare incident of this scale for China’s growing robotaxi industry, but likely adds to scrutiny facing the sector globally as more cities roll out driverless cars.

Late in 2025, a number of Alphabet’s Waymo robotaxis stalled mid-ride due to a power outage in San Francisco, stranding passengers in cars. BLOOMBERG