Jidu Auto (集度汽車), a joint venture of Chinese technology giants Baidu Inc (百度) and Zhejiang Geely Holding Group (吉利控股), aims to spend 50 billion yuan (US$7.7 billion) over the next five years on developing smart-vehicle technologies.
Over the next two to three years, the joint venture aims to hire 2,500 to 3,000 staff for the project, including about 500 software engineers, it said.
The branding for the nascent auto marque is set to be unveiled in the third quarter of this year, a Jidu spokesperson added.
Baidu owns 55 percent of Jidu and Geely has a 45 percent stake in the