Baidu Patents AI System to Translate Animal Sounds
The owner of China’s largest search engine has filed a patent to convert animal vocalization into human language.
Chinese tech company Baidu has patented a brand-new system in an attempt to discover whether it’s possible to translate animal sounds into understandable human language. Scientists have long attempted to decode how animals communicate, and Baidu’s latest attempt aims to leverage AI to accomplish a breakthrough.
The patent has been filed with the China National Intellectual Property Administration and will aim to develop a system to collect a range of animal data, including vocalizations, physiological signals, and behavioral patterns. It’s proposed that these data points will be preprocessed and merged into an AI-powered data analysis system to recognize animal communication. If successful, an animal’s emotional state could be connected with semantic meanings and translated into human languages.
Baidu’s patent document claims to unlock the potential for establishing deeper emotional communication with animals to accomplish genuine cross-species communication. According to a Baidu spokesperson, the company acknowledges the worldwide interest this patent has generated but cautions that the system remains in the research phase.
It’s the latest investment the Chinese tech giant has made since the debut of ChatGPT in 2022. Baidu is already considered one of China’s most prominent innovators in the AI space, having released its latest AI model in April 2025, dubbed Ernie 4.5 Turbo.
The goal of achieving accurate cross-species communication is being pursued by various international researchers beyond China’s borders. Another project Baidu will be competing with is Project CETI (Cetacean Translation Initiative), which has been using a combination of AI and statistical analysis since 2020 to discover how sperm whales communicate with each other.
Baidu’s latest move appears to be a way for the tech giant to diversify its AI offerings. Although its recent slew of AI products has been released to much fanfare, it’s struggled to gain traction as competition has intensified inside and outside China.
Local media reports have sparked a wave of discussion and debate across China’s social media platforms. One Weibo user was cautious, saying, “While it sounds impressive, we’ll need to see how it performs in real-world applications.
Despite the renewed interest in uncovering what animals are saying, efforts to connect animal and human language have been made for decades in rudimentary form. The timeline remains open-ended, with little progress being made currently.