Baidu names former Microsoft Office head Qi Lu as its COO

Chinese search giant Baidu has named former Microsoft business group head Qi Lu as its COO and group president. Until last September Lu was head of Microsoft's Applications and Services Group, where he managed products including Microsoft Office and Office 365, Bing search engine and Cortana personal assistant. At Baidu, Lu will be in charge of products, technology, sales, marketing and operations. A key strategic focus for the company over the next ten years will be artificial intelligence, Baidu chairman and CEO Robin Li said on Monday. Li is counting on Lu's leadership experience and knowledge of AI to help the company attract the necessary expertise to become a global leader in the field, he said.