Baidu sets up $3b fund to throw money at later-stage startups

Goodies at Baidu HQ in Beijing, China. Photo credit: Jon Russell.

Baidu, China’s top search engine company, has just set up a brand-new investment fund worth US$3 billion.

Baidu Capital will focus on mid- and later-stage startups, with most rounds being in the range of US$50 to 100 million, said the firm today in an announcement. The funding will either be in US dollars or Chinese yuan.

Funding for Chinese startups hit a record high in the first six months of the year.

This new fund will mix Baidu’s moolah with cash from an array of undisclosed sources, such as insurance funds, securities companies, and “some government-backed investment institutions.”

The Beijing-based internet giant, valued at US$62 billion, last month set up Baidu Venture with US$200 million at hand to invest in earlier-stage startups focused on AI, AR, and VR.

Despite China’s gradual economic slowdown, funding for the nation’s startups is still exploding. A record high US$37 billion was put into startups in the first six months of the year, double the tally of the same period in 2015.

Converted from Chinese yuan. Rate: US$1 = RMB 6.72.