Home / Biz updates
After its release of a new offline-to-online toolkit named Zhida (Baidu Connect) on Sept 3 at its annual Baidu World event, Baidu's US Research and Development Center followed up by hosting its 2014 Summer Tech Day on Tuesday in Sunnyvale, California.
Like Google's annual I/O, the annual event of China's largest search engine is considered a barometer for its new product direction. It aims to help traditional businesses transit onto a mobile platform by providing package service via mobile.
Via Baidu Connect, users can skip all search pages to reach business services directly via mobile search, map and @ business to access search request directly.
About 10,000 Zhida beta tests were signed up upon the product release. Haidilao Hot Pot, for instance, a restaurant chain known for hot-pot spicy meals, is reported to have had 700,000 hits since its beta launch, mostly merchants eager to build apps to capture users looking for local services.
According to Baidu, there was a 133 percent increase in mobile searches from July 2013 to July 2014, a strong indication of changing consumer behavior. Baidu hopes its Connect will embrace the mobile internet era and keep up with a rapidly changing consumer market.
According to Xiong Xiaojun, CEO of eTaoshi.com, a one-stop network food ordering platform based in Beijing, his company has signed up more than 17,000 restaurants under its flagship onto Baidu Connect to benefit its B2B customers.
The new transit also enables traditional companies accessing their customers more quickly for capital gain, and increasing commerce liquidity on Internet dividends. The follow-up services may go as far as clients' financial management.
Baidu World, which is 9 years old, has released many strategic products that determine the directions of the Internet giant, which is to find a better way to maintain customer loyalty, attract new customers, best leverage technology in mobile era and, most of all, let customers find its service.
This year, the most distinguished characteristic is the ability of big data analysis offered via Baidu Connect, where customer relationships and lifestyle hobbies are analyzed during the process of online services.
According to Andrew Ng, Baidu's chief scientist, the big data use artificial intelligence in such a way that all images, voices, gestures, vision, hearing, positions, tastes and smells are analyzed via its open cloud of an energy-efficient data center. The large-scale deep learning is powered by GPU, a data factory with new generation data management, query engine and big data mining.
By reimaging the data, Baidu Connect users can foresee branding insights, know their competition through industry trends and discover new ways of doing traditional businesses.
"It is really a win-win for both Baidu and its users, whether individual or enterprise, to enter this big data platform of Baidu, where traditional users can benefit in search of a package deal, and where enterprises can maximize their business by generating new business. Along the way, Baidu Connect is a winner too with a maximized customer base," said Oliver Yu, San Jose State business school professor.
Baidu was founded by three Stanford graduates on Jan 1, 2000 and has been a legendary success in China since its establishment. Headquartered in Beijing, Baidu is the first Chinese company listed on the NASDAQ 100 index (BIDU) with a market capitalization of more than $60 billion.
After two years of mobile service positioning and strategic planning, today Baidu search has 400 million monthly active users and is one of the largest mobile traffic sources in China. In August, it partnered with Tencent Holdings and commercial real estate developer Dalian Wanda Group to develop offline-to-online e-commerce.
Alex Cheng, general manager of Baudu USA, said the company has grown rapidly from 25 employees since 2011 to 70, and is expected to reach 100 employees by the end of the year. Other than research and development, the US center works through distribution agencies for online advertising transactions in the US.
To Handel Jones, president of IBS Inc, a Los Gatos based consulting firm, Baidu's mobilization is indicating the world's Internet leadership.
"Baidu is developing B2B capabilities that are competitive in global market as well as in the China market. There is a rapid transition to technology leadership as well as business leadership," said Jones.
For China Daily
