Baidu announces plan to establish intelligent EV company and forms strategic partnership with Geely

Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) ("Baidu" or the "Company"), a leading Internet platform and AI company, today announced its plan to establish a company to produce intelligent electric vehicles (EV), and that it has entered into a strategic partnership with multinational auto manufacturer Zhejiang Geely Holding Group ("Geely"). Baidu will provide intelligent driving capabilities to power the passenger vehicles for the new venture, and Geely, which holds the distinction of best-selling Chinese automobile brand in past years under the Volvo and Geely brands, will contribute its expertise in automobile design and manufacturing.

"At Baidu, we have long believed in the future of intelligent driving and have over the past decade invested heavily in AI to build a portfolio of world-class self-driving services. China has become the world's largest market for EVs, and we are seeing EV consumers demanding next generation vehicles to be more intelligent." said Robin Li, Co-founder and CEO of Baidu. "As a top Chinese automaker with global reach, Geely has the unique experience and resources to design, produce and market energy-efficient, reliable and safe automobiles in large scale. We believe that by combining Baidu's expertise in smart transportation, connected vehicles and autonomous driving with Geely's expertise as a leading automobile and EV manufacturer, the new partnership will pave the way for future passenger vehicles."