China Ends Robotaxi Permit Freeze After Baidu Outage Safety Review中国结束自动驾驶出租车牌照冻结，百度停运安全审查完成后重启发牌

Chinese regulators have begun re-issuing robotaxi operating permits, ending an industry-wide freeze that was imposed after a Baidu Apollo Go software outage grounded more than one hundred driverless cabs and left riders stranded. Bloomberg reported the resumption on Thursday, citing sources with knowledge of the regulatory process.

The permit restart puts companies including Baidu and Momenta back into active expansion mode across Chinese cities. The freeze had paused fleet growth at a sensitive moment, with U.S. rival Waymo accelerating its own commercial rollout.

Beijing's decision to restart permitting signals that the safety review concluded without triggering a broader regulatory rethink, and that the government remains committed to maintaining China's position in commercial autonomous driving despite the diplomatic turbulence surrounding its AI sector more broadly.