(File photo)

Chinese search engine Sogou, a subsidiary of Sohu.com, on Monday, unveiled its initial public offering (IPO) in the U.S., a strategic move that many see as an attempt to take on Chinese search engine giant Baidu.

It plans to submit a confidential draft registration statement to the US Securities and Exchange Commission for the launch, according to a statement by Sohu.

“The IPO may commence as early as market conditions permit, and is subject to Sogou's filing with the (Securities and Exchange Commission)…in compliance with the U.S. Securities Act of 1933,” read Sohu’s statement, without revealing the number of shares or the size of the IPO.

In an earlier interview with Bloomberg in January, Sogou’s CEO Wang Xiaochuan said that the company was eyeing a $5 billion IPO.

The IPO is widely seen as a move to narrow the gap with Baidu in the search engine market, especially as Tencent also invested $448 million in Sogou, which is currently co-owned by Tencent (45.27 percent) and Sohu (39.21 percent).