Chinese tech giant Baidu received permits to commercially operate five fully autonomous vehicles with no human assistants on board in Chongqing and Wuhan, marking a first for the country.

Baidu says it will operate its autonomous ride-hailing service Apollo Robotaxi on open roads during the daytime in both cities.

The company will impose multiple measures including monitoring and parallel driving to ensure passenger safety, said an insider.

In other cities where the company's robotaxis operate, including Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen, Baidu is required to have a human safety operator present in the vehicle.