China has issued new autonomous driving permits to EV maker XPeng and Volkswagen's joint venture in China, intensifying the commercialization race between Chinese autonomous driving companies and Tesla in the country. XPeng announced on social media on Monday that it has obtained a permit to conduct "demonstration operations" for its Yoyo robotaxi service in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province. Volkswagen Anhui Automotive Co. also received a Level 3 autonomous driving road test permit in Hefei, Anhui province, on Monday. XPeng's Yoyo robotaxi, which has Level 4 autonomous driving capabilities, is now allowed to carry paying passengers, marking a final major test before receiving regulatory approval for commercial operation. Volkswagen's joint venture with JAC Motors has begun real-world road testing and data collection for conditional autonomous driving technology in the city. According to a May report by the International Energy Agency, as of March, Chinese and U.S. companies were operating commercial robotaxi services in 11 and 10 cities, respectively. China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has set a goal for the large-scale application of autonomous vehicles by 2030.