10 Best Self-Driving Technology Stocks To Buy According to Hedge Funds

8. Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU)

Number of Hedge Fund Investors In Q3 2024: 54

Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) is a Chinese technology giant that is a key player in the country’s autonomous driving industry. The firm’s Apollo Go Robotaxi service is one of the most well-developed in the world. Unlike its US counterparts, Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) has already rolled out a working service, as it was testing as many as 500 vehicles in China as of July 2024. The firm scored another win in November when it secured approval to test the service in Hong Kong. Since Hong Kong is one of the most prosperous regions in the world, a successful commercial rollout there could drastically reshape Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU)’s autonomous driving future. The firm also plays a key role in the Chinese machine-learning sector through products such as PaddlePaddle. Given that machine learning is essential to autonomous driving, Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU)’s software strengths can augment its autonomy service. Yet, semiconductor tensions between the US and China could deprive it of key chips to run software on, and pessimistic investor sentiment surrounding Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU)’s stock is reflected through its forward P/E ratio of just 7.92 times.

Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU)’s management shared important details about its autonomous driving platform during the Q3 2024 earnings call. Here is what they said:

“Turning now to intelligent driving, we’ve reached another significant milestone. The sixth-generation of our autonomous vehicle, RT6, is now operating on public roads in multiple cities in China. This not only expands our vehicle lineup, but also reaffirms our commitment to scaling operations and providing users with safer, more affordable and comfortable mobility experiences. Following our achievements of 100% fully driverless operations in Wuhan last quarter, the proportion of fully driverless operations nationwide surpassed 70% in the third quarter and 80% in October.

Recently, we have taken another step forward in expanding fully driverless operations. We are delighted to share that in October, we achieved 100% fully driverless operations in Chongqing, where we currently operate a growing fleet of autonomous vehicles. We continued to scale up our services in third quarter, with Apollo Go providing about 988,000 rides to the public nationwide, representing year-over-year increase of 20%. The cumulative rides provided to the public surpassed 8 million in October, further solidifying our leadership in smart mobility. We’re fully confident that our autonomous driving technology has achieved technical maturity, with proven safety and reliability through extensive testing and real-world operations. While our technology is ready for wider deployment, safe and responsible autonomous driving requires a solid foundation of a harmonized regulatory framework.”