Baidu plans Hong Kong IPO of AI chip unit Kunlunxin in spin-off move
A general view of the Baidu logo is seen at the Shanghai New Expo Center during the 2025 World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai, China, on July 28, 2025.
YingTang | Nurfoto | Getty Images
Chinese tech giant baidu Beijing has announced plans to spin off its AI chip subsidiary Kunlunxin and list it in Hong Kong, as more domestic chipmakers seek funding amid a push for semiconductor self-sufficiency.
The company said in a statement: announcement It said on Friday that it had filed for a confidential listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, but details of the offering, including the size and structure, have not yet been determined.
The move will require approvals from regulators, including China’s securities watchdog. Baidu emphasized that there is no guarantee that the split will continue. company reportedly It owns approximately 59% of Kunlunxin.
Baidu, a major player in China’s growing AI space, is both a buyer of custom AI chips for data centers and cloud computing and, through Kunlunxin, their designer.
The spin-off will be in line with Kunlunxin’s strategy to highlight its independent potential, attract industry-specific investors and expand financing options, the firm said. It was also stated that Kunlunxin will remain a subsidiary of Baidu.
The move comes amid intensifying US-China technology tensions. Both Washington and Beijing have imposed various restrictions on Chinese AI companies’ access to cutting-edge AI chips based in California. Nvidia.
Meanwhile, Beijing has increasingly encouraged domestic chip purchases and mobilized billions of dollars of public funds for development.
In recent months, several Chinese chipmakers have announced plans to list, including Moore Threads and Biren Technology.
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Founded in 2012, Kunlunxin is Baidu’s “full-stack “AI company,” covering hardware, servers, and data centers, as well as AI models and applications.
While Baidu has historically been heavily reliant on Nvidia’s chips to provide most of its AI computations, Ernie has increasingly begun using a mix of homegrown chips in its data centers to run its AI models.
Kunlunxin also moved to operating as a separate entity, expanding its sales to third-party customers outside of Baidu.
Reuters previously reported Kunlunxin’s revenue is expected to exceed 3.5 billion yuan ($500 million) last year, reaching breakeven. The report stated that foreign sales are expected to account for more than half of its revenue in 2025.
Kunlunxin as another sign of strength last year orders won worth over 1 billion yuan from suppliers China MobileOne of the country’s largest mobile operators.
China Mobile also participated in the organization’s latest financing, which raised over 2 billion yuan and valued the unit at around 21 billion yuan, according to Reuters.
In its announcement, Baidu said its plans to spin off Kunlunxin and take it public would better link management incentives to performance and increase the unit’s presence in the market.
Late last year, JPMorgan analysts predicted Kunlunxin’s chip sales would grow sixfold to 8 billion Chinese yuan in 2026.
