Geely and Baidu officially launch JiYue 01 ROBOCAR with AI and voice-activated parking
Just over two months after announcing a restructuring of its business partnership to bring its AI-powered 01 ROBOCAR to market, Geely and Baidu have officially launched the futuristic autonomous EV in China. The 01 arrives as the world’s first consumer vehicle featuring Baidu’s full Apollo suite of Level 4 autonomous driving solutions.
In January of 2021, Baidu announced it was expanding from software development into physical EV production, joining forces with multinational automotive manufacturer Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, better known as Geely. By March of that year, the JIDU marque was officially announced following $300 million in startup capital, which was joined by an additional $400 million in Series A funding led by Baidu in January of 2022.
The original brand of JIDU was created to popularize autonomous driving and human-machine interaction technologies, specifically its ROBO-01 concept, which debuted in early 2022 equipped with a unique internal voice interaction system allowing for communication between the “human-car-environment.”
This past August, Baidu’s partner Geely announced it would be taking on a larger role in JIDU as well as a larger financial stake. Previously, Geely owned a 45% minority stake in JIDU, while Baidu owned 55%. However, with the creation of the JiYue marque, Geely now owns a 65% stake and operates the brand under its own umbrella, while Baidu maintains a 35% minority stake.
At the time, a representative for Geely also told Electrek that JIDU will continue to operate as a separate entity and “technology facilitator” to its successor JiYue, which has inherited the previous name’s logo as well as the 01 ROBOCAR which launched today.
JiYue’s 01 ROBOCAR launches in China
It’s wild to think that today marks the official launch of the 01 ROBOCAR because we’ve been following it for over two years now from the time it was a mere concept. JiYue showcased its AI-centric EV at its ROBODAY 2023 event held in Shanghai.
Following the event, we’ve learned some exciting features Chinese consumers can expect to experience when deliveries will begin. To start, the 01 ROBOCAR sits atop Geely’s ever-popular Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA), which will come in two battery variations: 71.4kWh and 100kWh, providing 550km (342 miles) and 720km (447 miles) CLTC range, respectively. The EV can also recharge from 10% to 80% in under 30 minutes on a DC fast charger.
The powertrain comes in single and dual motor configurations, offering power of 200kW or 400kW and acceleration from 0-100km/hr (0-62 mph) in 3.8 seconds. JiYue explained that the 01 ROBOCAR launches as the first mass production model to utilize Qualcomm’s 8295 intelligent vehicle cockpit chip, helping power the automaker’s intelligent vehicle AI partner – SIMO. Per JiYue:
SIMO speech recognition speed is as fast as 500ms and covers complex scenarios in and out of the vehicle, four-way simultaneous conversations, and continued conversations. The AI system also integrates multi-modal interactions including voice, gestures, and visual cues to enhance personalization to the users. SIMO is backed by Baidu’s integrated AI system Ernie Bot enabling it to continue growing and develop logical reasoning and strategic planning capabilities.
The ROBOCAR JiYue 01 is the world’s first model to support voice-activated/controlled parking while outside the vehicle. Users can command ROBOCAR JiYue 01 to utilize its AVP autonomous valet parking function to park itself or pickup users in indoor or outdoor parking lots from up to 2km away
Additionally, the 01 ROBOCAR launches with NVIDIA DRIVE Orin autonomous drive chips and vision-centric intelligent drive architecture that features 11 HD cameras, 12 ultrasonic radars, and 5-millimeter wave radars, supporting the EV’s ROBO Drive Max feature.
ROBO Drive Max is a monthly subscription model offering ROBOCAR owners access to the EV’s Point to Point (PPA) navigation assistance, capable of fully-autonomous lane changing and overtakes, highway on and off ramp maneuvering, multi-lane obstacle avoidance, identifying zebra crossing and traffic lights, giving way to pedestrians, unprotected left turns, and avoiding non-motorized vehicles.
JiYue states its flagship EV’s autonomous capabilities including autonomous valet parking, function on 90% of China’s highways and in 3 urban cities – Hangzhou, Beijing, and Shanghai –with plans to expand to 200+ additional cities in China in 2024.
JiYue shared that 01 ROBOCAR deliveries will begin shortly now that the flagship EV has officially launched, although the automaker has not shared pricing yet. Looking ahead, the marque says it will continue to develop its second model, originally called the ROBO-2, teased last December.
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First Solar just cut the ribbon on a huge new factory in Iberia Parish, Louisiana, and it dwarfs the New Orleans Superdome. The company’s $1.1 billion, fully vertically integrated facility spans 2.4 million square feet, or about 11 times the size of the stadium’s main arena.
The factory began production quietly in July, a few months ahead of schedule, and employs more than 700 people. First Solar expects that number to hit 826 by the end of the year. Once it’s fully online, the site will add 3.5 GW of annual manufacturing capacity. That brings the company’s total US footprint to 14 GW in 2026 and 17.7 GW in 2027, when its newly announced South Carolina plant is anticipated to come online.
The Louisiana plant produces First Solar’s Series 7 modules using US-made materials — glass from Illinois and Ohio, and steel from Mississippi, which is fabricated into backrails in Louisiana.
The new factory leans heavily on AI, from computer vision that spots defects on the line to deep learning tools that help technicians make real‑time adjustments.
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry says the investment is already a win for the region, bringing in “hundreds of good-paying jobs and new opportunities for Louisiana workers and businesses.” A new economic impact analysis from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette projects that the factory will boost Iberia Parish’s GDP by 4.4% in its first full year at capacity. The average manufacturing compensation package comes in at around $90,000, more than triple the parish’s per capita income.
First Solar CEO Mark Widmar framed the new facility as a major step for US clean energy manufacturing: “By competitively producing energy technology in America with American materials, while creating American jobs, we’re demonstrating that US reindustrialization isn’t just a thesis, it’s an operating reality.”
This site joins what’s already the largest solar manufacturing and R&D footprint in the Western Hemisphere: three factories in Ohio, one in Alabama, and R&D centers in Ohio and California. Just last week, First Solar announced a new production line in Gaffney, South Carolina, to onshore more Series 6 module work. By the end of 2026, the company expects to directly employ more than 5,500 people across the US.
Read more: First Solar pours $330M into a new South Carolina solar factory
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No, it’s not the new Bolt. GM’s design team previewed a new high-riding “sporty Chevrolet EV” that should be brought to life.
Is Chevy launching a new sporty EV?
This is the all-electric vehicle Chevy should sell in the US. General Motors’ design team released a series of sketches previewing a sporty new Chevy EV.
Although it kinda looks like the new 2027 Chevy Bolt EV as a higher-sitting compact crossover SUV, the design offers a fresh take on what it should have looked like.
The new Bolt is essentially a modernized version of the outgoing EUV model with a similar compact crossover silhouette. Nissan adopted a similar style with the new 2026 LEAF as buyers continue shifting from smaller sedans and hatchbacks to crossovers and SUVs.
Will we see the sporty Chevy EV in real life? It’s not likely. For one, the “exploration sketch” is by GM China Advanced designer Charles Huang.
GM Design posted the sketches on its global social media page, but the caption read “Sporty Chevrolet EV for the China Market.”
It’s too bad. The Bolt could use a sporty sibling like an SS variant. Chevy introduced the Blazer EV SS (check out our review) for the 2026 model year, its fastest “SS” model yet. Packing up to 615 horsepower and 650 lb-ft of torque, the Chevy Blazer SS can race from 0 to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds when using Wide Open Watts (WOW) mode.
Will the Bolt be next? I wouldn’t get my hopes up. And if GM does bring the sporty Chevy EV to life, it will likely only be sold in China. Like all the fun cars these days.
What do you think of the design? Would you buy one of these in the US? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
While deliveries of the 2027 Bolt are set to begin in early 2026, Chevy is offering some sweet deals on its current EV lineup, including up to $4,000 off in Customer Cash and 0% APR financing for 60 months.
Ready to test drive one? You can use our links below to find Chevy Equinox, Blazer, and Silverado EVs at a dealership near you.
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Environment
Podcast: Electricity is the base currency, Tesla Robotaxi crashes, new Porsche Cayenne EV, and more
In the Electrek Podcast, we discuss the most popular news in the world of sustainable transport and energy. In this week’s episode, we discuss electricity becoming the base currency, Tesla Robotaxi crashes, the new Porsche Cayenne EV, and more.
The show is live every Friday at 4 p.m. ET on Electrek’s YouTube channel.
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After the show ends at around 5 p.m. ET, the video will be archived on YouTube and the audio on all your favorite podcast apps:
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Here’s the live stream for today’s episode starting at 4:00 p.m. ET (or the video after 5 p.m. ET:
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