Self-driving car technology startup Pony.ai is taking to the streets as the company officially launches its first public road tests of autonomous vehicles using its technology.

Pony.ai, little-known in the west but founded by former engineers from both Google X (now Waymo) and Baidu Inc., nonetheless has gotten a lot of financial support — most recently with a $112 million investment from some of Silicon Valley’s biggest venture capital firms. It’s developing level 4 autonomy technology that allows vehicles to perform all safety-critical driving functions and monitor roadway conditions for an entire trip.

The company signed an agreement Feb. 2 with China’s second-largest carmaker, Guangzhou Automobile Group Co. Ltd., to codevelop autonomous vehicles. It also announced its first public road tests, involving self-driving vehicles navigating a 2.8 kilometer route in Nansha, a district in the Chinese city of Guangzhou.

Members of the public can travel in the vehicles, a sort of semi-trial of a future taxi service. The vehicles have already been privately tested over thousands of kilometers of roads.

“Within the span of three short months, Pony.ai’s autonomous driving platform has already learned to deal with unique road scenarios such as congested city streets, inclement weather, and unexpected road behavior more typical of an urban Chinese driving environment,” the company said in a statement. “These scenarios have pushed the Pony.ai team to further enhance and refine their algorithms, creating a more sophisticated AI system that is capable of handling more complex road conditions.”

The initial test fleet consists of four Lincoln MKZs, large four-door sedans, and two compact SUVs manufactured by GAC.

GAC Group President Xingya Feng spoke on the evolution of the market, saying that “the global automotive industry is in the process of undergoing profound change,” with automotive products becoming rapidly smarter, more connected and more lightweight while harnessing innovations in alternative energy.

Feng went on to add that the partnership between GAC Group and Pony.ai would be part of the company’s efforts to spearhead innovations in the automotive space by leveraging the unique advantages that both organizations bring to the table.

Photos: Pony.ai