COMPANIES · FOUNDATION MODELS
Alibaba Group
In the AI Economy Index: Major, 0.92% (as of 2 October 2026)
Alibaba Group develops the open-weight Qwen family of large language models and sells AI infrastructure and model-hosting services through Alibaba Cloud.
Alibaba Group develops the open-weight Qwen family of large language models and sells AI infrastructure and model-hosting services through Alibaba Cloud.
Qwen is one of the most widely downloaded open-weight model families, and Alibaba has paired it with custom AI chip development as it positions Alibaba Cloud as core AI infrastructure for Chinese businesses.
Alibaba Cloud earns revenue from selling cloud computing, storage and AI model API/hosting services, while Qwen models are largely open-sourced with paid API tiers; this scope excludes Alibaba's much larger e-commerce business.
China (Hangzhou)
Foundation models and AI laboratories. The organizations actually building the AI models themselves, like the systems behind ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini. This is the most crowded, fastest-moving layer of the AI economy right now.
Connections (11)
Every connection below is tied to a readable source, date, classification and statement of its limits. A company source establishes what that company stated; it does not necessarily provide independent confirmation.
Current relationships (5)
Source: 2026-01-19 · reviewed 2026-09-20
Evidence: Secondary reporting (unconfirmed by primary parties) · Reported operating
Limits: Does not establish Alibaba's ownership percentage, board representation, or investment amount.
Alibaba-backed startup Moonshot AI's valuation is up $500 million, sources say, after its rivals IPO in Hong Kong ↗Source: 2025-09-18 · reviewed 2026-09-27
Evidence: Primary-source statement · Reported operating
Limits: Does not establish exclusivity or a financial relationship beyond standard Bedrock model-hosting terms.
Alibaba's Qwen3 and DeepSeek-V3.1 models now available in Amazon Bedrock ↗Source: 2023-10-20 · reviewed 2026-09-20
Evidence: Secondary reporting of an on-record executive statement · Completed
Limits: Does not establish current ownership percentage, board seats, or whether Alibaba's stake changed ahead of Zhipu's 2026 IPO.
Alibaba, Tencent Join $340 Million Funding for AI Startup Zhipu ↗Source: Source undated · reviewed 2026-09-20
Evidence: Primary-source statement · Reported operating
Limits: Does not establish the volume of NVIDIA hardware deployed on Alibaba Cloud, exclusivity, or contract value between the companies; US export restrictions also limit which NVIDIA chips can be used within China.
Alibaba Cloud Platform Overview ↗Source: Source undated · reviewed 2026-09-20
Evidence: Secondary reporting of an on-record executive statement · Reported operating
Limits: Does not establish Alibaba's current stake following the IPO's share issuance and dilution, or any operational/commercial relationship beyond equity ownership.
MiniMax's IPO Prospectus Reveals Alliance with Alibaba, Holding 13.66% Indirect Stake ↗Dated or announced (3)
Source: 2026-07-30 · reviewed 2026-09-26
Evidence: Secondary reporting (unconfirmed by primary parties) · Reported pre-IPO holding
Limits: Secondhand report of a pre-IPO stake; does not confirm the current holding after the listing or any strategic or supply ties.
Alibaba's CXMT Bet Multiplies 20-Fold (Seoul Economic Daily) ↗Source: 2025-11-05 · reviewed 2026-10-02
Evidence: Secondary reporting of an on-record executive statement · Announced; not confirmed operating
Limits: Plan announced in 2025; does not establish launch, fleet size, commercial terms or revenue sharing. Speaker attribution narrowed to the company as reported.
Chinese EV maker Xpeng to roll out driverless cars with Alibaba's Amap to take on Tesla FSD ↗Source: 2017-11-30 · reviewed 2026-09-26
Evidence: Secondary reporting of an on-record executive statement · Announced in 2017; current status not confirmed
Limits: A 2017 project announcement; does not establish that Alibaba remains a GDS customer today, the size of any current business, or any AI use of the site.
GDS Holdings and Alibaba China data center development underway (DataCenterNews Asia) ↗Comparisons (3)
Source: Source undated · reviewed 2026-09-20
Evidence: Analytical comparison · Reported operating
Limits: Reflects overlapping product categories, not a claim from either company about the other, and does not indicate relative market share.
Alibaba unveils new Qwen model, custom chips in bid to become China's AI factory ↗Source: Source undated · reviewed 2026-09-20
Evidence: Analytical comparison · Reported operating
Limits: Reflects overlapping product categories rather than a direct claim by either company, and does not indicate relative market share.
Baidu launches Ernie 5.0 as the firm's AI assistant users reach 200 million a month ↗Source: Source undated · reviewed 2026-09-20
Evidence: Analytical comparison · Ongoing market overlap as of 2026
Limits: Market-overlap comparison only; does not establish relative market share, revenue, or any commercial/ownership relationship between the two companies.
Tencent Cloud vs Alibaba Cloud (2026): Which Is Better? ↗Alibaba unveils new Qwen model, custom chips in bid to become China's AI factory ↗
Reviewed
Inclusion in this database is not an endorsement of a company or its securities. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy or sell anything, and none of it is individualized investment advice. See the disclosures. Data: AI Map v3.25.45, released .