ChinaBiz Briefing: Li Auto’s Wearables, Reusable Rockets and Didi Driverless Testing

China’s tech and industrial champions are doubling down on embodied intelligence—from AI glasses and humanoid robots to robotaxis—even as legacy business models in search and online ads come under pressure. A near-breakthrough in reusable rockets and aggressive autonomous-driving deployments underscore Beijing’s push to build hard-tech advantages. At the same time, Baidu’s layoffs and robot rental price crashes highlight how quickly hype cycles are being repriced as markets seek sustainable economics.

Li Auto Bets on “Wearable Robots” With Livis AI Glasses

Li Auto has launched its first AI glasses, Livis, priced at 1,999 yuan (US$282), entering a segment already crowded with at least 32 domestic models from Alibaba, Baidu and startups like Inmo and Rokid. The 36-gram glasses skip an optical display and focus on imaging plus voice interaction powered by Li Auto’s in-house Mind GPT model, with deep integration into its vehicles for functions such as opening doors and adjusting cabin temperature.

Why it matters: This is the first true AI eyewear product from a mainstream automaker, signaling that Chinese carmakers see themselves as consumer hardware and operating-system players, not just vehicle manufacturers. Li Auto frames Livis as a “wearable robot” within an “embodied intelligence” strategy, positioning the device as an all-day controller for smart environments rather than a car accessory. But its user base is tiny compared with internet giants, and regulatory limits—such as bans on vehicle summoning—may constrain the short-term advantages of tight car–device integration.

LandSpace’s Zhuque-3 Nearly Nails China’s First Orbital Booster Recovery

Private launch company LandSpace’s methane-fueled Zhuque-3 completed a successful maiden orbital mission on December 3, but its first-stage booster crashed just meters from the landing pad in Gansu after one of five engines malfunctioned during the final burn. All earlier phases—from flip maneuver to supersonic reentry burn and guided descent using titanium grid fins and stainless-steel structures—performed as planned.

Why it matters: The near-miss puts China on the brink of joining the US as only the second country with a reusable orbital rocket led by commercial actors, with Zhuque-3 racing state-backed Long March 12A and private rival Tianlong-3. Reusability is critical to cutting launch costs and enabling the large-scale LEO constellations Beijing wants for global broadband coverage, and LandSpace is explicitly designing for 20+ reuses, echoing SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and Starship playbook. With Europe, Russia, Japan and India still at the concept stage, China is emerging as the clear “number three” in the global reusable launch race.

Baidu’s Deep Layoffs Expose Strains in Search-to-AI Transition

Baidu has begun broad layoffs affecting everyone from fresh graduates to ten-year veterans as it absorbs a third-quarter net loss of 11.2 billion yuan (US$1.56 billion). The loss was driven by a 16.2 billion yuan write-down on outdated AI infrastructure and a 19% year-on-year decline in search advertising revenue, as younger users increasingly turn to Xiaohongshu and Douyin for information and platforms wall off content from Baidu’s crawler.

Why it matters: The cuts underline how fragile the economics are for China’s first-generation internet platforms as they pivot from mature ad businesses to capital-intensive AI and autonomous driving. Despite being early with Ernie Bot, Baidu is losing consumer AI mindshare to ByteDance’s Doubao, while AI revenues—about 10 billion yuan in the quarter—are not yet offsetting core declines. CEO Robin Li has taken direct control of base and application model R&D, but with market cap at just one-eighteenth of Tencent’s, Baidu faces a double bind: defending a shrinking search franchise while funding long-horizon AI and robotaxi bets that remain far from profitability.

Robot Rental Prices Collapse Over 90% as Hype Gives Way to Reality

Daily rental rates for robots in China have plunged more than 90% from peaks earlier this year, with humanoids now going for 3,000 yuan (US$415) per day and robot dogs as low as 339 yuan. The market flipped from “no stock available” after Unitree’s Spring Festival Gala performance drove a wave of demand—at one point pushing daily fees for its G1 humanoid to 20,000 yuan—to oversupply after manufacturers ramped production and newcomers flooded the rental business.

Why it matters: The price crash is a classic post-hype correction in embodied intelligence, forcing a shift from one-off show performances to scenario-based services in eldercare, rehab and industrial settings. Lower hardware costs and new content tools that let users “program” robots by uploading human movement videos are reducing technical barriers, helping move robots from spectacle to productivity tools. With China’s installed base of industrial robots more than doubling since 2020 and policymakers targeting a 1 trillion yuan embodied-intelligence market by 2035, the current shakeout is less an end to the boom than a reset toward sustainable business models.

Didi Scales Up 24/7 Fully Driverless Testing in Guangzhou

Didi Autonomous Driving has begun round-the-clock, fully driverless passenger testing in Guangzhou’s Huangpu district, removing in-car safety drivers entirely and integrating robotaxis directly into its main ride-hailing app. The service operates 24/7 across dense urban scenarios—from subway stations to schools and office parks—with remote customer-service support accessible via in-car displays.

Why it matters: Full-time, safety-driver-free operations in a complex, high-density Chinese city mark a new phase for robotaxis, moving beyond staged demos and event-based pilots such as Didi’s role at the National Games. By plugging autonomous vehicles into its existing dispatch algorithms and mixed fleet, Didi can test real-world substitution between human drivers and AVs at scale, a key step toward viable unit economics. The push also advances Guangzhou’s ambitions as a smart-city testbed and intensifies competition with Baidu’s Apollo Go and emerging automaker-led autonomous programs.

Xiaomi 17 Ultra Leak Shows Arms Race in “Ultra-Premium” Flagships

Leaked specs for Xiaomi’s upcoming 17 Ultra suggest a camera- and battery-centric flagship launching before Chinese New Year. The “Nezha”-codenamed device is expected to feature a quad-camera setup built around a 50MP OVX10500U main sensor and a 200MP telephoto, a high-efficiency 2K-class display with ultra-thin bezels, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, and a 6,000–7,000 mAh battery with wireless charging, UWB car key support and dual-satellite connectivity.

Why it matters: The configuration underscores how Chinese OEMs are using camera performance, battery endurance and connectivity extras to challenge Apple and Samsung in the ultra-premium tier. Tying UWB and satellite features directly to cars and outdoor use plays into China’s broader push to interlink smartphones with smart vehicles and emergency services. If Xiaomi is first to market with Snapdragon 8 Elite in this segment, it could gain early share among high-end Android users domestically and in select overseas markets.

China’s next moves to watch: whether any Chinese rocket program can complete an orbital booster recovery in the coming months; how quickly robotaxis in cities like Guangzhou transition from “testing” to genuine commercial scale; and whether Baidu’s restructuring delivers visible AI traction before further erosion in its core search business.