Baidu Key Stats
Baidu, Inc. is a Chinese multinational technology company that specializes in internet services and artificial intelligence. The company holds a dominant position in China’s search engine market and operates from its headquarters in Beijing’s Haidian District.
Beyond its core search business, Baidu provides a wide range of products including Baidu App, Baidu Maps, iQIYI video streaming, and the ERNIE AI chatbot. The company has invested heavily in autonomous driving through its Apollo platform and operates Apollo Go robotaxi services in several Chinese cities.
Baidu trades on NASDAQ under the ticker symbol BIDU and maintains a secondary listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The company serves over 679 million monthly active users through its flagship Baidu App and processes billions of search queries daily.
Baidu History
Baidu Co-founders
Baidu Competitors
Baidu operates in a competitive landscape that includes technology giants from China and around the world. The company faces competition in search, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and autonomous driving sectors.
Traditional search competitors include Tencent‘s Sogou and Qihoo 360 Search. The rise of AI has introduced new challengers like DeepSeek while established tech firms including Google and Microsoft continue to develop Chinese-language search capabilities.
| Company | Primary Focus | Headquarters |
|---|---|---|
| Tencent Holdings | Social Media, Gaming, Search | Shenzhen, China |
| Alibaba Group | E-commerce, Cloud, Search | Hangzhou, China |
| ByteDance | Social Media, AI, Content | Beijing, China |
| Sogou | Search Engine | Beijing, China |
| Qihoo 360 | Search, Cybersecurity | Beijing, China |
| Microsoft Bing | Search Engine | Redmond, USA |
| DeepSeek | AI, Large Language Models | Hangzhou, China |
| JD.com | E-commerce, Logistics | Beijing, China |
| Huawei | Hardware, Cloud, AI | Shenzhen, China |
| Xiaomi Corporation | Consumer Electronics, AI | Beijing, China |
Baidu Revenue
Baidu generated approximately $18.5 billion in revenue during 2024. The company derives the majority of its income from online marketing services through its search engine platform. Cloud services and AI initiatives represent growing revenue streams.
Revenue peaked at around $19.5 billion in 2021 before experiencing slight declines. The company continues to invest in artificial intelligence and autonomous driving as future growth drivers while maintaining its dominant position in China’s digital advertising market.
Baidu Marketcap
Baidu’s market capitalization stands at approximately $40 billion as of late 2025. The company reached its all-time high stock price of $339.91 in February 2021, briefly pushing its valuation above $100 billion.
Market cap fluctuations reflect investor sentiment toward China’s technology sector and the company’s strategic pivots. Baidu’s investments in AI, including its cloud computing capabilities similar to those developed by major tech giants, continue to shape its market valuation.
Baidu Acquisitions
Baidu has completed 22 acquisitions across multiple countries and sectors since its founding. The company’s acquisition strategy has focused on strengthening its mobile ecosystem, expanding entertainment offerings, and advancing AI capabilities.
The acquisition of 91 Wireless in 2013 for $1.9 billion marked the largest Chinese internet deal at that time. This purchase gave Baidu a strong mobile app distribution platform during the smartphone adoption surge in China. The company also acquired PPStream’s video business for $370 million the same year to bolster its online video presence.
In 2014, Baidu expanded internationally by acquiring Brazilian e-commerce site Peixe Urbano. This move demonstrated the company’s ambitions to grow beyond Chinese borders, though international expansion has remained challenging. The company has made strategic investments in sectors ranging from cybersecurity to healthcare data services.
The most recent major acquisition came in February 2025 when Baidu completed the $2.1 billion purchase of YY Live from JOYY Inc. This deal had originally been announced in 2020 at $3.6 billion but faced regulatory delays. The acquisition strengthens Baidu’s position in the live streaming market and provides competition against ByteDance and other entertainment platforms.
Baidu’s subsidiary iQIYI, often called the Netflix of China, operates as a separate publicly traded company. The video streaming platform competes with Tencent Video and Alibaba’s Youku in China’s crowded streaming market. Through these acquisitions and investments, Baidu has diversified beyond its core search business into entertainment, cloud computing, and autonomous vehicles.
FAQs
Who founded Baidu and when was it established?
+Robin Li and Eric Xu founded Baidu on January 18, 2000, in Beijing, China. They started the company with $1.2 million in venture capital funding from Silicon Valley firms.
What is Baidu’s market share in China?
+Baidu holds over 50% of China’s search engine market share. The company serves approximately 679 million monthly active users through its Baidu App platform.
What is Baidu’s largest acquisition?
+Baidu’s largest acquisition was YY Live streaming platform for $2.1 billion in February 2025. Previously, the 91 Wireless deal for $1.9 billion in 2013 held this record.
What AI products does Baidu offer?
+Baidu offers ERNIE Bot, a ChatGPT competitor, and the Apollo autonomous driving platform. The company also provides AI cloud services, voice recognition, and image processing technologies.
Where is Baidu stock traded?
+Baidu trades on NASDAQ under the ticker BIDU and on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange under stock codes 9888 and 89888. The company IPO’d in August 2005.