Chinese AI Company Expects 'Limited' Impact From New US Chip Controls

Baidu, a major Chinese artificial intelligence company, said it doesn’t expect to be severely impacted by the U.S.’s new China-related chip controls. Speaking during a Nov. 22 earnings call, Executive Vice President Dou Shen said the impact of the restrictions will be “quite limited in the near future,” adding that a “large portion” of its AI cloud business “and even wider AI business does not rely too much on the highly advanced chips.” The company also has “already stocked enough in hand” for “the part of our businesses that needs advanced chips.”

Shen said there are “alternatives” to the chips now subject to controls, and Baidu has the “technologies to use these alternatives to achieve most of the same effectiveness and efficiency in our AI Cloud and wider AI businesses.” He also said automotive chips “are not on the prohibited list, so this means that in the near future, in-vehicle computing is not affected.”