Baidu (BIDU) — A Quiet AI Powerhouse Poised for Its Next Growth Cycle
Baidu (BIDU) has been overshadowed by the bigger names in global tech, but under the surface, this Chinese internet leader is quietly positioning itself as one of the strongest emerging plays on artificial intelligence. The stock trades around $126, and Deutsche Bank just upgraded it to Buy from Hold, raising its price target to $156 — suggesting more than 20% upside from current levels.
What’s driving the optimism is Baidu’s deep integration of AI across its ecosystem — not just in one area, but several. The company’s AI Cloud division is growing rapidly, with full-stack infrastructure that helps enterprise customers deploy AI efficiently and at scale. Meanwhile, Baidu’s autonomous driving unit, Apollo Go, is already one of the most advanced robotaxi platforms in the world and continues to expand into new cities.
Beyond that, Baidu’s intelligent search business is evolving from traditional keyword queries into AI-powered, conversational results — a shift that could create entirely new monetization channels. Its AI chip arm, Kunlunxin, adds another growth lever, supplying custom silicon designed to meet the surging demand for AI computing across industries.
While overall revenue may dip slightly this year due to advertising softness, Baidu’s cloud revenue is expected to jump 23%, and analysts see total growth accelerating again in fiscal 2026 as AI-driven products gain traction. With multiple new revenue engines kicking in and a leading position across China’s AI stack, Baidu looks like one of the most overlooked ways to play the next leg of the AI boom.
