Ford, Baidu Partner on Connectivity, AI Projects in China

Ford Motor Co. and Chinese internet services provider Baidu Inc. have agreed to collaborate on in-car digital services, artificial intelligence and digital marketing projects for the Chinese market.

The companies signed a letter of intent earlier today that includes plans to set up a jointly operated “connectivity lab” in China. The facility will develop cloud-based AI products designed for use in vehicles and elsewhere.

Ford and Baidu plan to work on advanced in-car infotainment systems and digital services that tap the capabilities of Baidu’s DuerOS software platform. The operating system features AI-driven image and natural conversation voice recognition.

The partners also expect to explore “big-data” approaches to targeted digital marketing. Ford says the alliance will help it better understand the preferences and behaviors of Chinese consumers.

The new alliance expands on the connection established between the two companies last July. That’s when Ford joined Baidu’s open-platform Apollo autonomous-driving system as a founding member. Baidu launched Apollo as a rival to the proprietary automated platform being developed by Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo unit.