Baidu’s Mass Robotaxi Rollout Stirs Heated Debate in China “萝卜快跑”满街窜：百度大规模推出无人驾驶出租车引争议 Chinese tech giant Baidu has found itself at the center of a social media storm this week over its rapidly expanding robotaxi service, which is fueling concerns over road safety and job prospects. The company was granted permission to operate fully autonomous taxis in the central metropolis of Wuhan in 2022, and it has since rolled out hundreds of its Apollo Go robotaxis in the city. The self-driving taxis have become popular — with Baidu offering super cheap rides to win customers — and the company is eyeing expansion into other Chinese megacities. 本周，中国科技巨头百度因其快速扩张的无人驾驶出租车服务而成为社交媒体风暴的中心，引发了人们对道路安全和就业前景的担忧。 该公司于2022年获准在中部城市武汉运营完全自动驾驶出租车，此后在该市推出了数百辆“萝卜快跑”无人驾驶出租车。 这种自动驾驶出租车已开始流行——百度提供超低价乘车服务以赢得客户——该公司正着眼于向中国其他特大城市扩张。 → fueling 英 [ˈfjuːəlɪŋ] 美 [ˈfjuːəlɪŋ] v. 给……提供燃料；给（交通工具）加满油；（使火）更旺；增加；煽动（激烈的情感或活动）（fuel 的现在分词） n. 燃料补给 To fuel a situation means to make it become worse or more intense. 加剧 The result will inevitably fuel speculation about the prime minister's future. 该结果将不可避免地加剧人们对首相前途的猜测。 → grant 英 [ɡrɑːnt] 美 [ɡrænt] v. 授予，给予；承认 n. 补助金，拨款；（政府给予的）土地；给予，授予；合法转让 If someone in authority grants you something, or if something is granted to you, you are allowed to have it. 准予 France has agreed to grant him political asylum. 法国已经同意给予他政治庇护。 → permission 英 [pəˈmɪʃ(ə)n] 美 [pərˈmɪʃ(ə)n] n. 同意，许可；许可证，书面许可 → They worked together in the 1960s, and have kept in contact ever since. 他们在20世纪60年代曾一起工作，自那时起就一直保持着联系。
