Passengers read on a driverless minibus in Guiyang city, southwest China's Guizhou province.
In Guanshanhu district of Guiyang, capital of southwest China's Guizhou province, a fleet of driverless minibuses threads through urban traffic. Their windows are printed with eye-catching QR codes and curated reading lists, signalling a new kind of public service.
Sun, a tourist from Zunyi city traveling with her child, scanned a QR code as soon as she sat down and was immediately drawn to the vast collection of audiobooks available. "Listening to audiobooks is a good fit for the ride, and since my child can't read many Chinese characters yet, listening with headphones makes it easy to follow the whole story," she said.
The minibuses offer AI-powered reading recommendations, listening sections, and children's reading areas, ensuring most passengers can find content suited to their needs.
Bringing a digital reading platform onto driverless minibuses to create mobile libraries is a new initiative by the Guizhou Provincial Library, aimed at expanding public access to reading materials.
