by Angela Guess

A new press release reports, “Baidu, Inc., the leading Chinese language Internet search provider, announced today it has established an Augmented Reality Lab dedicated to developing state of the art technologies and building AR-based applications for a diverse set of industries. The new lab, which is a spin-off from Baidu’s Institute of Deep Learning (IDL), is Baidu’s latest effort to leverage its technology and customer base to explore AR applications powered by fundamental AI technologies like computer vision and deep learning. In August 2016, Baidu launched an AR platform for smart phones. Leveraging this platform, Baidu has built a range of AR-based marketing and advertising solutions for the world’s leading brands such as L’Oreal China, KFC China and Lancôme, providing customers with fun, interactive experiences to learn about products and offerings. In L’Oreal China’s case, users can activate AR effects on shampoo bottles and interact with the images to get promotions.”

The release goes on, “AR functionality is now available in multiple Baidu products including gateway apps Mobile Baidu, Baidu Maps and local services app Baidu Nuomi, offering hundreds of millions of users immediate access to the new AR experiences. When users search for certain keywords on Mobile Baidu, options to see AR effects related to those keywords appear on the screen. ‘AR allows us to synthesize the virtual world with the real world, and will transform how all of us perceive our surroundings,’ said Zhongqin Wu, Head of Baidu’s new AR Lab. ‘We’ve already seen rapid growth in AR marketing, and expect other industries to follow’.”

Read more at Marketwired.

Photo credit: Baidu