Baidu names ex-Fiat Chrysler exec as CEO of its new EV firm with Geely

Details:

• Xia was the co-founder and chief technology officer of bike-sharing startup Mobike, which was acquired by food delivery giant Meituan for US$2.7 billion in 2018. He also served as the head of Fiat Chrysler’s Asia-Pacific smart car association division.
• The electric vehicles will be sold under a new brand. They will be equipped with Baidu’s infrastructure solutions, including autonomous driving platform Apollo, voice assistance platform DuerOS, and Baidu Maps.

Context:

• Baidu announced a strategic partnership with Geely in early January. The tech giant will provide intelligent driving capabilities while the latter will contribute its automobile expertise.
• The search engine said during its Q4 earnings call that it aims to roll out a new EV model in around three years.