A Chinese technology company that runs the country's most-used internet search engine, along with maps, cloud services, and artificial-intelligence products like the Apollo self-driving platform. It was founded in 2000 by Robin Li and Eric Xu, and its name comes from a line in a Song dynasty poem by Xin Qiji that reads "searching for her among the crowd a hundred and thousand times" — a fitting origin for a search company. Baidu also operates the Ernie AI chatbot and a popular online encyclopedia called Baike.
20-F · Fiscal year ended Dec 31, 2025 · SEC filing ↗
Baidu swung to an operating loss in 2025 after a RMB16.2 billion non-cash impairment of its Core asset group.
Baidu's online advertising engine stalled further, and a large asset pushed the company into the red. fell 3% to RMB129.1 billion while a RMB16.2 billion non-cash on the Core business drove an operating loss of RMB5.8 billion, even as AI Cloud growth accelerated. The company is now spending more than it brings in from operations, drawing down cash to fund an AI future that has yet to offset the decline in its legacy business.
Key takeaways
A RMB16.2 billion non-cash of the Baidu Core asset group turned what would have been an of RMB10.4 billion into a reported operating loss of RMB5.8 billion.
Total fell 3% to RMB129.1 billion, as a decline in online marketing revenue from AI-driven monetization changes and weak macro conditions outweighed growth in cloud services.
AI Cloud growth accelerated, driven by enterprise AI adoption, though the filing does not quantify the exact growth rate or absolute figure.
Section summaries
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
The company faces interest rate risk on RMB214.5B in investments and foreign exchange risk from USD/RMB and USD/JPY exposures, using swaps and some hedging.
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A hypothetical 100-basis-point rate rise would reduce the fair value of short-term investments and long-term time deposits and by RMB1.3 billion (US$190 million).
The company uses interest rate swaps to convert variable-rate term loans from a 2021 facility into fixed-rate debt, mitigating floating-rate exposure.
Cost of rose 10% to RMB72.4 billion, primarily from higher bandwidth, , and server costs tied to cloud expansion, while R&D expenses fell 8% on lower personnel costs.
Net cash used in operating activities was RMB3.0 billion, a swing of RMB24.2 billion from the RMB21.2 billion provided in 2024, largely due to a RMB14.5 billion swing.
iQIYI declined 7% to RMB27.3 billion, pressured by a lighter content slate that reduced membership services revenue and by lower online advertising amid macro headwinds.
What changed
The online marketing decline flagged in 2024 deepened: Baidu Core's online marketing fell again in 2025 as AI-driven changes to search and persistent macro weakness continued to pressure advertising budgets.
The halving of in 2024 was not a one-year spike. turned negative in 2025, with net cash used in operations of RMB3.0 billion versus RMB21.2 billion provided the year before, driven by a large swing.
AI Cloud growth accelerated from the 17% rate reported in 2024, as enterprise AI adoption gained traction, though the 's margin trajectory was not separately disclosed.
Cash and equivalents, already at a seven-year low of $3.4 billion at end-2024, continued to decline as the company funded AI infrastructure and needs, though the exact year-end 2025 figure is not provided in the filing sections given.
A new risk materialized: the RMB16.2 billion long-lived asset in 2025, flagged as a possibility in prior risk factors, was recorded against the Core asset group, and the company now carries RMB36.8 billion in that remains subject to future impairment.
What to watch
Whether Baidu Core's online marketing stabilizes or continues to decline as AI-powered search alters user behavior and advertiser demand.
and trajectory, to see if the negative operating cash flow in 2025 is a one-year event or the start of sustained cash consumption.
The pace of AI Cloud growth and whether its margin profile improves enough to offset the ongoing decline in the higher-margin online marketing business.
Any further charges against the RMB36.8 billion balance or other long-lived assets, which would signal that the AI transition is destroying more legacy value than it is creating.
Most and costs are RMB-denominated, but material assets and liabilities including US$12.5B in USD cash and investments and US$8.9B in USD debt create foreign exchange risk.
A hypothetical 10% RMB against the USD would reduce the USD-equivalent cash balance from US$34.0B to US$31.9B; a 10% USD appreciation would increase RMB debt value by RMB6.2 billion (US$893 million).
In 2025, the company began entering hedging transactions to reduce foreign currency exposure, supplementing its existing interest rate swaps.
Baidu's VIE structure, PRC regulatory uncertainty, and AI/online marketing headwinds pose material risks to operations and ADS value.
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Baidu relies on contractual VIE arrangements for ~50% of external revenues and key licenses, but these agreements may be less effective than direct ownership and are untested in PRC courts.
PRC authorities could deem the VIE structure non-compliant, potentially forcing Baidu to relinquish operations, deconsolidate VIEs, and severely diminish or wipe out ADS value.
Online marketing , a primary income source, declined in 2024-2025 due to AI transformation impacts, unfavorable macroeconomics, and competition from AI-powered search altering user behavior.
Significant investments in generative AI and foundation models face uncertain commercialization, intense competition, and evolving PRC regulations, risking failure to recoup costs or asset .
A RMB16.2 billion long-lived asset was recorded in 2025, and future impairments of (RMB36.8 billion) or other assets could materially hurt financials.
U.S. HFCAA delisting risk persists if PCAOB access to audit inspections in China is lost again, and new U.S. trade/investment restrictions could limit access to critical AI technology and capital.
Baidu is a leading AI company with a strong internet foundation, operating through Baidu General Business (Mobile Ecosystem, AI Cloud, Intelligent Driving) and iQIYI.
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Baidu General Business, excluding iQIYI, contributed over 70% of total and spans Mobile Ecosystem (led by Baidu App with 679M MAUs), AI Cloud, and Intelligent Driving & Other Growth Initiatives.
The AI Cloud is differentiated by a full-stack AI architecture and includes AI Cloud Infrastructure and AI Applications like Baidu Wenku and Baidu Drive.
Intelligent Driving, centered on the Apollo Go robotaxi service, has achieved 100% fully driverless operations in all its Chinese mainland cities and is expanding internationally through partnerships with Uber and Lyft.
iQIYI is a leading online entertainment video service in China, offering a library of over 40,000 premium long-form content titles and approximately 20,000 micro dramas, monetized through memberships and advertising.
The company's competitive position is built on a decade-long investment in AI, a proprietary four-layer AI stack (infrastructure, PaddlePaddle framework, ERNIE models, applications), and a large open-platform ecosystem.
Operations are primarily conducted in Chinese mainland, which generated more than 96% of the group's in 2025, and the company relies on variable interest entities (VIEs) to hold necessary licenses for regulated businesses.
Revenue fell 3% to RMB129.1B in 2025 on lower online marketing, while a RMB16.2B Core asset impairment drove an operating loss.
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Total decreased 3% to RMB129.1 billion, driven by a decline in online marketing revenue that was partially offset by growth in cloud services.
Baidu General Business fell 2% to RMB102.5 billion as AI-driven monetization changes and weak macro conditions pressured advertising budgets, while cloud growth accelerated on enterprise AI adoption.
iQIYI declined 7% to RMB27.3 billion due to lower membership services revenue from a lighter content slate and reduced online advertising revenue amid macro pressure.
Operating loss of RMB5.8 billion resulted from a RMB16.2 billion non-cash of the Core asset group; excluding this, was RMB10.4 billion.
Cost of rose 10% to RMB72.4 billion mainly on higher bandwidth, , and server costs tied to cloud expansion, while R&D expenses fell 8% on lower personnel costs.
Net cash used in operating activities was RMB3.0 billion versus RMB21.2 billion provided in 2024, largely due to a RMB14.5 billion swing in .