Baidu shaking up its medical business with emphasis on AI

View of Baidu Inc'stand at an exhibition in Wuhan, Central China's Hubei province, Oct 18, 2012. [Photo/VCG]

China's major internet search engine Baidu Inc is restructuring and optimizing its medical business, by emphasizing artificial intelligence in its layout, according to the company.

Baidu said part of its medical teams will be integrated into the artificial intelligence and search engine teams, while other health business units will be shut down and the related employees will be offered other roles.

Li Zheng, general manager of Baidu's medical unit, will join the AI team, a move to accelerate the exploration and application of AI solutions in the medical field.

The focal point of its medical business will be changed from low-level services to the higher-level medical R&D and AI-based innovation.

"The most important force to change the medical field is artificial intelligence," said Robin Li, chairman and chief executive officer of Baidu, on Wednesday.