Didi Global Inc rolled out an autonomous car and self-driving taxi services on Thursday, outlining its first big business foray since becoming a central target of Beijing’s sweeping campaign to rein in powerful tech players.

The company showcased a self-driving concept car called the Didi Neuron during a sleek press event, without saying when it will be available. Didi’s level four self-driving technology, a standard a standard just shy of complete autonomy, is at a stage where it can be “fully self-reliant and controllable”, chief technology officer Zhang Bo said. Didi’s self-driving taxi services are already available in specific areas of Shanghai and Guangzhou, he added.

“We have already made the long-term preparations for our autonomous driving development efforts, both mentally and in terms of our resources,” Zhang, who also heads Didi’s autonomous driving business, said.

The Neuron was described as 4.5 meters long, with three screens in the front and two in the back, sporting eight different cameras. Meng Xing, chief operating officer of Didi’s autonomous driving unit, demonstrated how its trunk comes with a giant robotic arm that swivels out and helps load luggage.

The announcement signals Didi is preparing to tiptoe back into the public spotlight, following the restoration of its main apps to the country’s biggest mobile stores in January. It is the highest-profile indication that the company has begun mounting a comeback from a year-long security probe, after Beijing ordered Didi to delist in the US and erased US$60 billion from its market value.

Regulators fined the company US$1.2 billion for violating data security rules that affected national security, and also fined its co-founders Cheng Wei and Jean Liu 1 million yuan (US$145,520) individually.

Didi, once feted as a national champion that forced Uber Technologies Inc out of China, was one of the major targets of Beijing’s crackdown on its internet industry that began in 2020. The regulatory easing on the company was among the clearest signs that officials may be relaxing their grip over top firms from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd to Tencent Holdings Ltd to boost economic growth, which will allow Didi to eventually work toward relisting its stock in Hong Kong.

  - Bloomberg