Baidu, Inc. ( BY-doo; Chinese: 百度; pinyin: Bǎidù; lit. 'hundred degrees') is a Chinese multinational technology company specializing in Internet services and artificial intelligence. It holds a dominant position in China's search engine market via Baidu Search and provides a wide variety of other internet services such as Baidu App, Baidu Baike, iQIYI, Baidu Tieba, and ES File Explorer. Beyond its core search business, Baidu has diversified into autonomous driving (Baidu Apollo), smart consumer electronics (Xiaodu), and a full-service AI stack including software, chips, cloud infrastructure, foundation models, and applications.
Baidu was incorporated in January 2000 by Robin Li and Eric Xu, with origins in RankDex, an earlier search engine developed by Li in 1996. The company is headquartered in Beijing's Haidian District. In December 2007, Baidu became the first Chinese company included in the NASDAQ-100 index. As of May 2018, its market cap rose to US$99 billion. In October 2018, Baidu became the first Chinese firm to join the Partnership on AI, a US-based computer ethics consortium. The Chinese government views Baidu as one of its national champion corporations.
Early Development
Robin Li joined IDD Information Services in 1994, a New Jersey division of Dow Jones, where he helped develop software for the online edition of The Wall Street Journal and worked on search algorithms until 1997. In 1996, Li developed the RankDex site-scoring algorithm, which used hyperlinks to measure website quality, predating Google's PageRank by two years. He received a US patent for this technology, and later applied it to Baidu's search engine.
Baidu was incorporated on 18 January 2000. In 2001, Baidu introduced a pay-per-click advertising model, allowing advertisers to bid for ad space and pay only when users clicked, predating Google's approach. In 2003, Baidu launched news and picture search engines with technology to identify and group articles.
Public Listing and Expansion
Baidu went public on NASDAQ on 5 August 2005 through a variable interest entity based in the Cayman Islands. In 2007, Baidu received a license from Beijing to operate as a full-fledged news website, becoming the first Chinese search engine to do so. Baidu launched its Japanese search service in 2008, its first outside China, but closed it on 16 March 2015.
On 31 July 2012, Baidu partnered with Sina for mobile search results. On 18 November 2012, it partnered with Qualcomm to offer free cloud storage to Android users with Snapdragon processors. In 2013, Baidu launched a Personal Assistant app for business professionals. On 16 May 2014, Andrew Ng was appointed chief scientist, leading Baidu Research in Silicon Valley and Beijing. In July 2014, Baidu launched a Brazilian search engine, Baidu Busca, and acquired local e-commerce site Peixe Urbano in October.
Autonomous Driving and AI Initiatives
In April 2017, Baidu announced the Apollo project, a self-driving vehicle platform offering vehicle, hardware, open-source software, and cloud data services. In September 2017, Baidu launched a $1.5 billion autonomous driving fund to invest in up to 100 projects, and released Apollo 1.5. That year, Baidu partnered with Continental and Bosch on automated driving, and with Snap Inc. as an ad reseller for Snapchat in several Asian markets.
In September 2017, Baidu rolled out a portable talking translator, weighing 140 grams, capable of listening and speaking in multiple languages, also functioning as a Wi-Fi router. Baidu also integrated AI into smartphones via its deep learning platform. In October 2017, Baidu announced plans for self-driving buses in China, and held its first Baidu World technology conference in November. In 2018, the Chinese government designated Baidu as one of its "AI champions." Also in 2018, Baidu divested its Global DU business, which included ES File Explorer and other utility apps.
AI Research and Presence
Baidu operates a full AI stack, including foundation models and cloud infrastructure, and has an AI lab that appears on LMArena leaderboards, indicating active participation in large language model benchmarking. The company's research spans Artificial intelligence, Machine learning, and Deep learning, with applications in Generative AI and Large language model technologies. Baidu's Apollo platform is a major player in autonomous driving, competing with other efforts in the field.
Baidu's AI research has contributed to advancements in Neural network and Transformer (architecture) architectures, and the company collaborates with academic institutions and industry partners. Its cloud services, similar to amazon web services and google cloud, provide infrastructure for AI development. Baidu's chips, such as the Kunlun series, are designed for AI workloads, positioning the company alongside other hardware-focused firms like amd and intel.
Legacy and Impact
Baidu's early innovation in link analysis, predating Google's PageRank, established its foundational role in search technology. The company's expansion into AI and autonomous driving reflects its strategic shift from a pure internet service provider to a technology leader. Baidu's inclusion in the NASDAQ-100 and Partnership on AI underscores its global influence. As of the late 2010s, Baidu's market valuation and government support have solidified its status as a national champion in China's tech sector.
Baidu's AI lab's presence on LMArena leaderboards highlights its ongoing commitment to advancing large language models, contributing to the broader field of Artificial intelligence. The company's diverse portfolio, from search to self-driving, demonstrates its ambition to lead in multiple technology domains.