Baidu is adding the AI agent OpenClaw to its main smartphone search app starting Friday. Users who join the new feature will be able to message the tool directly inside the app. It can help with tasks like writing code, planning schedules, and sorting digital files.
This is the first time OpenClaw will be available outside of messaging platforms like WhatsApp or Telegram. It was originally developed in Austria and released as open-source software.
Until now, people had to use separate apps to run it. Baidu, along with Tencent and Alibaba, already allowed OpenClaw on their cloud systems, but this update brings it directly to one of China’s biggest consumer apps.
Baidu expands OpenClaw access across app and e-commerce
Baidu says its main search app has around 700 million monthly active users. This new launch means a large portion of them could soon be using OpenClaw daily.
A spokesperson from Baidu said, “Users will be able to use OpenClaw inside our search app to complete daily tasks quickly.” It’s not stopping there either. The company is also integrating OpenClaw into other areas like e-commerce and digital services.
Competitor Alibaba has already pushed ahead with its own chatbot, Qwen, inside apps like Taobao and Fliggy.In the six days through February 11, it claims the bot helped process over 120 million customer orders.
Shoppers using Qwen get product suggestions, compare them, and pay through Alipay without leaving the app.
But not everyone is cheering for these tools. Cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike warned that tools like OpenClaw could be risky. “Giving these AI agents full access to business systems is dangerous,” the firm said. That warning comes as more companies jump to connect everything to AI.
BaiduWiki, Ernie Assistant, and the push for global reach
While working on OpenClaw access, Baidu also quietly launched a new project called BaiduWiki earlier this week. It’s a Wikipedia-style platform available in five languages: English, Spanish, French, Russian, and Japanese. Records from the Wayback Machine show the site went live Monday.
A now-deleted post from Baidu’s account on X said the new tool was the “international version” of its older encyclopedia platform, Baidu Baike, which started in 2008.
The company claims it already has over 1 million entries on BaiduWiki, all translated using several AI agents. By comparison, Baidu Baike had 30 million articles in Chinese as of January.
At the same time, the company also updated its Ernie Assistant with a new global search tool. That gives its 200 million users direct access to things like travel information and global landmarks. Analysts say this is a major part of Baidu’s strategy to close the information gap between local users in China and international readers.
Zhang Yi, who runs the research firm iiMedia, said the tool helps Chinese companies go global. “There’s always been a language problem for local firms trying to expand. This might solve that,” he said. The company also plans to expand global search into fields like technology and academics, based on reporting from Shanghai Securities News, a state-run outlet.
These changes could help boost many of Baidu’s businesses beyond China. That includes AI, cloud services, and advertising, which all rely on growing international user bases. Analysts say this is part of a much larger expansion push.
Source: https://www.cryptopolitan.com/china-owned-baidu-adds-openclaw/
