Baidu chief shrugs off renewed competition in search in China, saying the technology requirements are huge

Baidu chairman and chief executive Robin Li Yanhong has played down the impact from new competition in search, as a slowing economy pushes consolidation and crossover business among China’s internet giants.

“There will always be competition as companies expand and ecosystems overlap,” said Li, when asked about new competition from domestic rivals on the sidelines of China’s annual top legislative and political gathering, known as the “two sessions”, on Wednesday. “We should mind our own business.”

However, the billionaire founder of China’s dominant search engine could not resist taking a dig at competitors. “Behind [search] there’s a huge amount of technology involved, which those with entertainment genes may not be cut out for.”

Li’s remarks come after Jinri Toutiao became the latest to join the search fray. The news aggregation app of Chinese tech giant Bytedance launched an external search function earlier this month, enabling users to access content outside the app for the first time.

“A search service has been made available. It is part of Toutiao's expanded services in line with our motto of information creates value. Users can access it via the search bar on Jinri Toutiao. The product is still in a testing phase,” said a Bytedance spokeswoman in response to a request for comment.

Baidu has 20 years of experience in search, which has high barriers to entry and requires expertise in artificial intelligence, according to Li. “Baidu has been investing in AI for over 10 years,” said Li “search itself is a product of AI”.