Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) is a leading Chinese technology company, historically recognized for its search engine and advertising revenue. However, Baidu is now undergoing a significant transformation, aiming to become China's equivalent to Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA). This shift involves venturing into the development of proprietary AI chips, which are crucial for supporting next-generation compute-intensive models, cloud infrastructure, and autonomous driving systems.

On December 7, 2025, Citigroup maintained its "Buy" grade for BIDU, with the action being "hold." At the time of this announcement, the stock price was $125.66. Additionally, Citi has opened a '90-day positive catalyst watch' on Baidu, as highlighted by TheFly. This indicates a potential for positive developments in the near term, aligning with Baidu's strategic shift towards AI chip development. Baidu's semiconductor division, Kunlunxin, is preparing for a potential $3 billion IPO in Hong Kong. This move is expected to unlock value and provide the necessary funding to establish China's AI hardware infrastructure.

By developing energy-efficient, high-performance chips internally, Baidu aims to reduce its dependence on U.S. technology amidst tightening export restrictions, while also meeting the surging domestic demand for computing power. The current stock price of Baidu Inc. (BIDU) is $125.66, reflecting an increase of 5.85% or $6.94. Today, the stock has traded between a low of $122.63 and a high of $126.87. Over the past year, the stock has reached a high of $149.51 and a low of $74.71.

Baidu's market capitalization stands at approximately $42.61 billion, with a trading volume of 5,079,257 shares on the NASDAQ exchange. With a comprehensive ecosystem that includes chips, cloud services, software, and applications, Baidu is positioning itself to compete directly with Nvidia. This strategic shift is crucial as AI is likened to the new industrial revolution, and controlling the production of silicon chips is akin to controlling oil. Baidu's efforts to develop proprietary AI chips are a significant step towards achieving this goal.