China’s drivers fret as robotaxis pick up pace – and passengers
随着自动驾驶出租车和乘客的步伐加快，中国的司机们感到担忧
WUHAN, Aug 8 (Reuters) – Liu Yi is among China’s 7 million ride-hailing drivers. A 36-year-old Wuhan resident, he started driving part-time this year when construction work slowed in the face of a nationwide glut of unsold apartments.
武汉，8月8日（路透社）-刘毅是中国700万出租车司机之一。今年36岁的武汉居民他开始兼职开车，因为面对全国范围内大量未售出的公寓，建筑工程放缓了。
Now he predicts another crisis as he stands next to his car watching neighbours order driverless taxis.
现在，当他站在自己的车旁看着邻居们订购无人驾驶出租车时，他预测另一场危机。
“Everyone will go hungry,” he said of Wuhan drivers competing against robotaxis from Apollo Go, a subsidiary of technology giant Baidu (9888.HK),
“每个人都将挨饿，”他说，武汉司机竞争机器人出租车从阿波罗去，科技巨头百度。
Baidu and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology declined comment.
百度和工信部均拒绝置评。
Ride-hailing and taxi drivers are among the first workers globally to face the threat of job loss from artificial intelligence as thousands of robotaxis hit Chinese streets, economists and industry experts said.
经济学家和行业专家表示，随着数千辆机器人出租车在中国街头行驶，网约车和出租车司机是全球首批面临人工智能失业威胁的工人之一。
Self-driving technology remains experimental but China has moved aggressively to green-light trials compared with the U.S which is quick to launch investigations and suspend approvals after accidents.
自动驾驶技术仍处于试验阶段，但与美国相比，中国已积极采取绿灯试验，美国在事故发生后迅速启动调查并暂停批准。
At least 19 Chinese cities are running robotaxi and robobus tests, disclosure showed. Seven have approved tests without human-driver monitors by at least five industry leaders: Apollo Go, Pony.ai, WeRide, AutoX and SAIC Motor (600104.SS), .
披露显示，至少有19个中国城市正在进行机器人出租车和机器人巴士测试。至少有五家行业领导者批准了七项没有人类驾驶员监视器的测试：Apollo Go，Pony.ai，WeRide，AutoX和上汽集团。
Apollo Go has said it plans to deploy 1,000 in Wuhan by year-end and operate in 100 cities by 2030.
Apollo Go表示，计划年底前在武汉部署1,000台，到2030年在100个城市运营。
Pony.ai, backed by Japan’s Toyota Motor ， operates 300 robotaxis and plans 1,000 more by 2026. Its vice president has said robotaxis could take five years to become sustainably profitable, at which point they will expand “exponentially”.
由日本丰田汽车Pony.ai开设了新的标签，运营300辆机器人出租车，并计划到2026年再增加1,000辆。该公司副总裁表示，机器人出租车可能需要五年时间才能实现可持续盈利，届时它们将“呈指数级”扩张。
WeRide is known for autonomous taxis, vans, buses and street sweepers. AutoX, backed by e-commerce leader Alibaba Group (9988.HK), operates in cities including Beijing and Shanghai. SAIC has been operating robotaxis since the end of 2021.
WeRide以自动出租车、货车、公共汽车和街道清扫车而闻名。AutoX由电子商务领导者阿里巴巴集团，在北京和上海等城市开展业务。自2021年底以来，上汽集团一直在运营机器人出租车。
“We’ve seen an acceleration in China. There’s certainly now a rapid pace of permits being issued,” said Boston Consulting Group managing director Augustin Wegscheider. “The U.S. has been a lot more gradual.”
“我们在中国看到了加速。波士顿咨询集团董事总经理Augustin Wegscheider说：”现在发放许可证的速度肯定很快。“美国的做法要渐进得多。”
Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O)Waymo is the only U.S. firm operating uncrewed robotaxis that collect fares. It has over 1,000 cars in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Phoenix but could grow to “thousands”, said a person with knowledge of its operations.
Alphabet的（GOOGL.O）Waymo是唯一一家运营无人驾驶机器人出租车的美国公司。一位了解其运营情况的人士表示，该公司在旧金山弗朗西斯科、洛杉矶和凤凰城拥有1,000多辆汽车，但可能会增至“数千辆”。
Cruise, backed by General Motors (GM.N), restarted testing in April after one of its vehicles hit a pedestrian last year.
由通用汽车支持的Cruise在去年一辆汽车撞上行人后，于4月重新开始测试。
Cruise said it operates in three cities with safety its core mission. Waymo did not respond to a request for comment.
克鲁斯说，它在三个城市开展业务，安全是其核心使命。Waymo没有回应置评请求。
“There’s a clear contrast between U.S. and China” with robotaxi developers facing far more scrutiny and higher hurdles in the U.S., said former Waymo CEO John Krafcik.
“美国和中国之间存在明显的对比”，机器人出租车开发商在美国面临更多的审查和更高的障碍，Waymo前首席执行官约翰·克拉夫西克（John Krafcik）表示。
Robotaxis spark safety concerns in China, too, but fleets proliferate as authorities approve testing to support economic goals. Last year, President Xi Jinping called for “new productive forces”, setting off regional competition.
机器人出租车在中国也引发了安全问题，但随着当局批准测试以支持经济目标，车队激增。去年，国家主席Xi近平呼吁发展“新生产力”，掀起区域竞争。
Beijing announced testing in limited areas in June and Guangzhou said this month it would open roads citywide to self-driving trials.
今年6月，北京宣布在有限的区域进行测试，广州本月表示将在全市范围内开放道路进行自动驾驶测试。
Some Chinese firms have sought to test autonomous cars in the U.S. but the White House is set to ban vehicles with China-developed systems, said people briefed on the matter.
知情人士说，一些中国公司曾试图在美国测试自动驾驶汽车，但白宫将禁止使用中国开发的系统的汽车。
Boston Consulting’s Wegscheider compared China’s push to develop autonomous vehicles to its support of electric vehicles.
波士顿咨询公司的Wegscheider将中国开发自动驾驶汽车的努力与其对电动汽车的支持进行了比较。
“Once they commit,” he said, “they move pretty fast”.
“一旦他们承诺，”他说，“他们移动得很快。
‘STUPID RADISHES’ “愚蠢的萝卜”
China has 7 million registered ride-hailing drivers versus 4.4 million two years ago, official data showed. With ride-hailing providing last-resort jobs during economic slowdown, the side effects of robotaxis could prompt the government to tap the brakes, economists said.
官方数据显示，中国有700万注册叫车司机，而两年前为440万。经济学家表示，在经济放缓期间，网约车提供了最后的就业机会，机器人出租车的副作用可能会促使政府踩刹车。
In July, discussion of job loss from robotaxis soared to the top of social media searches with hashtags including, “Are driverless cars stealing taxi drivers’ livelihoods?”
今年7月，关于机器人出租车失业的讨论飙升至社交媒体搜索的榜首，标签包括“无人驾驶汽车是否在窃取出租车司机的生计？”
In Wuhan, Liu and other ride-hailing drivers call Apollo Go vehicles “stupid radishes” – a pun on the brand’s name in local dialect – saying they cause traffic jams.
在武汉，刘和其他叫车司机称Apollo Go车辆为“愚蠢的萝卜”-这是当地方言中该品牌名称的双关语-说它们会造成交通堵塞。
Liu worries, too, about the impending introduction of Tesla’s (TSLA.O) “Full Self-Driving” system – which still requires human drivers – and the automaker’s robotaxi ambitions.
刘也担心特斯拉即将推出的TSLA.O全自动驾驶”系统-仍然需要人类驾驶员-以及汽车制造商的机器人出租车野心。
“I’m afraid that after the radishes come,” he said, “Tesla will come.”
“我担心萝卜来了之后，”他说，“特斯拉也会来。”
Wuhan driver Wang Guoqiang, 63, sees a threat to workers who can least afford disruption.
63岁的武汉司机王国强（音）认为，这对那些最不能承受中断的工人构成了威胁。
“Ride-hailing is work for the lowest class,” he said, as he watched an Apollo Go vehicle park in front of his taxi. “If you kill off this industry, what is left for them to do?”
“叫车是为最低阶层工作的，”他说，他看着一辆阿波罗Go汽车停在他的出租车前。“如果你杀死了这个行业，他们还能做什么？”
Baidu declined to comment on the drivers’ concerns and referred Reuters to comments in May by Chen Zhuo, Apollo Go’s general manager. Chen said the firm would become “the world’s first commercially profitable” autonomous-driving platform.
百度拒绝就司机的担忧置评，并向路透社提及Apollo Go总经理陈卓5月份的言论。陈说，该公司将成为“世界上第一个商业盈利的”自动驾驶平台。
Apollo Go loses almost $11,000 a car annually in Wuhan, Haitong International Securities estimated. A lower-cost model could enable per-vehicle annual profit of nearly $16,000, the securities firm said. By contrast, a ride-hailing car earns about $15,000 total for the driver and platform.
海通国际证券估计，Apollo Go在武汉每年每辆车损失近1.1万美元。这家证券公司说，一种低成本的模式可能使每辆车的年利润接近16,000美元。相比之下，一辆叫车车为司机和平台总共赚了大约15,000美元。
‘ALREADY AT THE FOREFRONT’
“已经在最前沿”
Automating jobs could benefit China in the long run given a shrinking population, economists said.
经济学家说，从长远来看，鉴于人口减少，自动化工作可能会使中国受益。
“In the short run, there must be a balance in speed between the creation of new jobs and the destruction of old jobs,” said Tang Yao, associate professor of applied economics at Peking University. “We do not necessarily need to push at the fastest speed, as we are already at the forefront.”
北京大学应用经济学副教授唐尧表示：“从短期来看，必须在创造新工作和破坏旧工作之间保持速度上的平衡。”“我们不一定需要以最快的速度推进，因为我们已经走在了最前沿。”
Eastern Pioneer Driving School (603377.SS), has more than halved its instructor number since 2019 to about 900. Instead, it has teachers at a Beijing control centre remotely monitoring students in 610 cars equipped with computer instruction tools.
东部先锋驾驶学校自2019年以来，其教练人数减少了一半以上，达到约900人。相反，它让北京一个控制中心的教师远程监控610辆配备计算机教学工具的汽车中的学生。
Computers score students on every wheel turn and brake tap, and virtual reality simulators coach them on navigating winding roads. Massive screens provide real-time analysis of driver tasks, such as one student’s 82% parallel-parking pass rate.
计算机在每个车轮转动和刹车点上给学生打分，虚拟现实模拟器指导他们在蜿蜒的道路上导航。大屏幕提供了对驾驶员任务的实时分析，例如一个学生82%的平行停车通过率。
Zhang Yang, the school’s intelligent-training director, said the machines have done well.
学校的智能培训主任张阳说，这些机器做得很好。
“The efficiency, pass rate and safety awareness have greatly improved.”
“效率、合格率和安全意识都有了很大提高。”