Baidu (BIDU) said Friday that AmiGo, developed through a partnership between its Apollo Go unit and PostBus, has secured a permit for Level 4 autonomous operations in Eastern Switzerland from the country's Federal Roads Office.

Baidu said that open-road autonomous driving trials began on June 1, covering roughly 80 square kilometers of service area across the St. Gallen, Appenzell Ausserrhoden, and Appenzell Innerrhoden cantons.

The company said that the next phase will involve a closed-group user trial, followed by initial rides without safety operators.

Baidu said it aims to launch fully driverless operations from 2027, contingent on meeting all safety and regulatory requirements.