Baidu is strengthening its position in the artificial intelligence (AI) space with the launch of MuseSteamer, a new video generator (a model for creating videos from images) specifically designed for professional use. The tool can produce short videos up to 10 seconds long and is available in three versions: Turbo, Pro and Lite, tailored to different business scenarios.
In the last year, major AI companies, such as OpenAI, have expanded beyond chatbots, into text-to-video and image-to-video generators.
See also: Cloudflare: Blocks AI data crawlers by default
However, unlike similar Western models (such as Sora OpenAI's), which primarily target consumers through subscription packages, Baidu is aimed exclusively at businesses. There is no consumer version or app yet.
The choice to offer the tool only to businesses — and not to the general public — shows that Baidu is investing in professional solutions , perhaps to target areas such as: Marketing, Ad Creation, and Digital Content Platforms.
The move is part of a broader effort by Baidu to compete with other Chinese tech companies, such as ByteDance, Tencent and Alibaba, which have already launched their own AI content production models.
See also: Facebook's new AI tool raises privacy concerns
At the same time, Baidu has made a major upgrade to its search engine, introducing a revamped interface that supports complex queries, as well as voice and image searches. In addition, the new system leverages AI technology to provide more targeted and relevant results, attempting to redefine the user experience.
The new search engine design shows that Baidu sees its traditional core — web search — under threat. Users are increasingly turning to AI-based Q&A models instead of traditional keyword search.
See also: Salesforce: AI does 30% – 50% of the work in the company
With image and voice support , it takes steps towards a multimodal experience , which is necessary to compete not only with Chinese chatbots like Doubao, but also with platforms like Perplexity or Google Search Generative Experience.
Source: Reuters
