Panicky in the Mobile Internet Era, Baidu Is Placid in the AI Age, Founder Says

Baidu Inc. took a walloping when the mobile Internet era arrived. The advent of the age of artificial intelligence has, by contrast, made it feel very comfortable, however, because "we positioned ourselves in AI technology and its market six or seven years ago," said Robin Li, founder of the Chinese internet behemoth. "This time has finally come, and our day is finally dawning," he said. Baidu failed to stake out an early position on the mobile internet, so when that time arrived, "We took a bit of a hit." Because many others had already deployed there, "It was very bad for Baidu, so the company at that time was a little nervous," Li admitted frankly at the GeekPark 2018 Innovation Festival in Beijing yesterday. Compared with the internet era, the era of AI changed both the supply side and the consumer side, and so Baidu can do a lot more than before, Li believes.