On Friday, the biggest search engine in China (Baidu) said that Lu Qi is quitting his position as a chief operating officer. He supervised Baidu, Inc. when the company shifted to the Artificial Intelligence after the ad scandal of 2016.
Lu Not Leaving for Good
Lu Qi is an Artificial Intelligence expert and also a former Microsoft executive. He joined Baidu at the end of 2016. He is responsible for the operations of the company’s AI unit. The AI unit became the main focus of the company this past year.
Qi is stepping down to take care of his family. In the meantime, Wang Haifeng, Vice President of the company, will take the position of COO. He will continue to supervise the company’s projects on the Artificial Intelligence. Lu will remain vice chairman of Baidu.
Baidu’s shares fell 9.5 percent on Friday as a result of the announcement.
Did Lu Save the Company?
Lu is considered one of the best in the world’s Artificial intelligence industry. He joined Baidu after a scandal linked to the company’s search business that required new regulations. The new regulations destroyed the company’s ad revenue. Search engines worldwide rely on ads and sponsored search results to continue service.
