Baidu sets record for AI patents in China with 2,368 filings

Baidu, often considered China‘s equivalent of Google, has set a record for the number of AI-related patents filed in the country.

The search engine giant has filed 2,368 AI patents in China according to PPAC’s Analysis on Artificial Intelligence Patents report.

Baidu’s patents are followed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (2036), Microsoft (1648), Tencent (1168), and Samsung (1047).

The report notes Baidu started late in filing applications, but the company quickly exceeded that of other applicants.

Baidu is now the patent leader in four key areas – natural language processing (693), smart search and recommendation (576), speech recognition (570), and autonomous driving (155).

Despite Baidu’s vast number of AI patent filings, China overall still falls behind the US, Japan, and even Europe.

For example, US-based computing giant IBM has filed an impressive 4,322 patents alone. Microsoft just beats Baidu with 2,635 patent filings.

The biggest takeaway is that AI-related patents are soaring around the world as companies seek to protect what’s likely to be among their most lucrative innovations over the coming years.