Baidu Health has updated its AI health assistant by integrating a new medical camera and a set of features that connect artificial intelligence responses with real doctors. The company announced that its AI services have reached over 50 million monthly active users, which the company claims is the largest in this sector. This was announced on October 24, according to sources Leiphone and China National Radio.
The medical camera can accept text input, speech in dialects, and photos. Baidu states that this is the first instance in China where users can upload videos or speak while recording. The goal of this feature is to help people describe symptoms that are difficult to express in words, such as skin changes, mobility issues, or the location of multiple symptoms. Baidu notes that the recognition was trained on three million professional multimodal images and over 100 million diagnostic data points, while practicing physicians continue to make adjustments.
Additionally, users can photograph laboratory reports; Baidu reports that reading these reports has been used over 27 million times in the past year with an accuracy above 98%.
Expansion of Doctor Matching Services
The second part of the update is a matrix of medical services. According to Baidu, over 150,000 doctors from leading hospitals are available 24/7 in the online consultation room, with response times reaching one minute. The artificial intelligence first structures the user's symptoms, test results, and medical history, then matches them with a suitable specialist who asks clarifying questions and provides a diagnosis. The appointment booking service allows users to reserve additional slots up to 30 days in advance; Baidu indicates that over 50,000 doctors offer more than 120,000 additional slots daily, and nearly 6 million appointments have already been scheduled.
Baidu has repeatedly emphasized that artificial intelligence does not replace diagnosis. Yang Minlu, General Manager of Baidu Health, stated that doctors retain the right to make decisions, and AI should act as an assistant, not a leader. Fan Daiming, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and president of the Chinese Cancer Association, noted that AI can expand the reach of medicine but cannot replace a physician's judgment.
The company also launched an open program that provides its doctor resources and AI capabilities free of charge to partners, such as chronic disease treatment apps, medical equipment manufacturers, and online pharmacies, through MCP, API, and H5 integrations. All user data and accuracy belong to Baidu.