Beijing, China- The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) has fined the country’s ride-hailing giant, Didi, US$1.2 billion for breaching the country’s cybersecurity law, data security law, and personal information protection law.
CAC’s latest penalty on Didi follows a yearlong investigation into the data practices of the ride-sharing giant that spoiled a blockbuster listing in the United States and ultimately led to a decision to delist from the New York Stock Exchange.
Nevertheless, the regulator’s announcement did not address whether Didi would be allowed to put its app back on Chinese app stores and to again register new users. The government had imposed those restrictions on Didi’s operations last July as part of its investigation.
“The facts of violations of laws and regulations are clear, the evidence is conclusive, the circumstances are serious, and the nature is vile,” read the part statement from CAC.
However, Didi has said in a statement that it sincerely accepts the regulator’s imposition of administrative penalties.
“We sincerely accept this decision, and resolutely obey it. We will strictly follow the penalty decision and the requirements of relevant laws and regulations, conduct comprehensive and in-depth self-examination, and actively cooperate with supervision and complete rectification carefully. We will take this as a warning and further strengthen the construction of cyberspace security and data security, strengthen the protection of personal information, and earnestly fulfill our social responsibilities. We will serve every passenger, driver and partner well, and realize the safe, healthy and sustainable development of the enterprise,” said Didi.
Meanwhile, Chinese search engine giant and artificial intelligence firm, Baidu, has unveiled its new autonomous vehicle which has a detachable steering wheel with plans for it to be used in its robotaxi service next year.
The Apollo RT6 will hit the roads without a steering wheel once Chinese authorities approve it, Baidu’s senior vice president Li Zhenyu said at a conference, adding that the driving capability of the autonomous vehicle can match a skilled human driver with over 20 years of experience.
According to Baidu’s chief executive Robin Li, the fully electric vehicle will cost US$37 000 compared to US$70 000 for the previous generation.
“This massive cost reduction will enable us to deploy tens of thousands of autonomous vehicles across China. We are moving towards a future where taking a robotaxi will be half the cost of taking a taxi today,” said Robin.
