China’s Baidu opens augmented reality lab to boost waning profits
A sign of Baidu is seen during the third annual World Internet Conference in Wuzhen town of Jiaxing, Zhejiang province, China November 17, 2016. REUTERS/Aly Song
Chinese search engine Baidu Inc on Monday launched an augmented reality (AR) lab in Beijing as part of a $200 million effort to revitalize the company's shrinking profits with cutting edge technology.
The lab, which currently employs 55 people, will initially aim to drive revenue through AR marketing, though will later explore healthcare and education.
"AR marketing is taking off," Andrew Ng, the chief scientist overseeing Baidu's artificial intelligence (AI), augmented reality and deep learning projects, told Reuters.
AR technology is still going through a regulatory teething phase in China. While Pokemon Go is yet to launch there, location-based AR concepts have sprung up, drawing the ire of regulators who have refused to license some services over security concerns.
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