May 22, 2012 - In the first quarter earnings call, according to the Surgeon General, theBaiduFounderRobin Lisaid Baidu strategically focuses its model R&D on areas with practical application value.
According to Robin Li, "Over the past few months, thebasic modelThere is a trend toward faster iterations, and one thing is always clear: the real value of the base model is the applications built on it, and the base model field is so broad that we don't have to get ahead in every direction."
Regarding the development of driverless vehicles, Robin Li said, "We are open to cooperation, and are actively negotiating with net car platforms, fleet operators and other parties, and some of the cooperation has taken initial shape, such as the recent cooperation with Shenzhou Rent-A-Car, which will launch the world's first self-driving car rental service, and will disclose more specific progress in the future. In addition, with the deployment of more than 1,000 completely driverless vehicles, we expect that the scale of Radish Express' global application may accelerate."
In terms of the profitability of unmanned cars, Robin Li said, "With the continued decline in hardware and labor costs, as well as the efficiency improvement brought about by the expansion of the scale of operations, a clear path to profitability has been seen, and the radish fast run is expected to become the core driver of Baidu's long-term growth."
According to 1AI, Baidu's total revenue for the first quarter reached 32.452 billion yuan, an increase of 3% year-on-year, compared with an estimated 31.03 billion yuan; non-GAAP net profit attributable to Baidu was 6.469 billion yuan, down 8% year-on-year.