Chinese tech giant Baidu reported better-than-expected Q3 earnings, reaffirmed investment in AI

 

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Chinese technology giant Baidu’s third-quarter revenue exceeded market expectations and the company reaffirmed its commitment to invest in artificial intelligence.

Revenue for the quarter ended September reached about 34.4 billion, rising by 6% from a year earlier and compared to market expected 34.2 billion yuan.

Net profit reached 6.68 billion yuan, compared to a net loss of 146 million yuan a year earlier and beating market expectation of 4.38 billion yuan. 

On a non-GAAP basis, net profit for the quarter was 7.3 billion yuan, surging 23% from a year earlier. Non-GAAP earnings per ADS was 20.4 yuan.

The company reported an adjusted profit of 20.4 yuan per American Depositary Share (ADS), compared with a profit of 16.87 yuan per share a year earlier, beating estimate of 16.55 yuan per ADS.

Baidu has in recent years focused increasingly on AI, creating a self-driving vehicle and investing heavily in generative AI, which is capable of creating text, images and other media. Last month, it unveiled the newest version of its generative AI model, Ernie 4.0, saying its capabilities were on par with those of ChatGPT maker OpenAI’s pioneering GPT-4 model.

Baidu will continue to prioritise AI investments, especially in generative AI and foundation models, to power its growth, said Chief Financial Officer Rong Luo. “We will do so with an unrelenting focus on efficiency and strategic resource allocation.”