Alibaba goes all in on AI, with Joe Tsai calling it a US$50 trillion market

Alibaba Group presented its strongest commitment to artificial intelligence this week.

Chairman Joe Tsai said AI could eventually create a US$50 trillion market and that the company plans to invest in every area of the AI industry rather than focusing on just one.

Tsai clarified that Alibaba is pursuing a comprehensive AI strategy that encompasses chips, cloud systems, core AI models, and user applications when speaking at the Viva Technology conference in Paris.

He said it was still too soon to know where the biggest profits in AI would land.

“If you look at global GDP, over US$100 trillion of GDP, at least half of that, US$50 trillion, is about human productivity and human intelligence,” Tsai said. “And that is the TAM (total addressable market) of AI. And that’s why we’re all in on AI.”

Tsai warned that today’s leading AI model companies may not remain dominant in the future, which is why Alibaba is investing across the entire AI industry rather than focusing on just one area.

The company’s AI strategy includes chips, cloud computing, its Qwen AI models, and AI tools integrated into services like e-commerce, food delivery, maps, and travel.

Tsai said Qwen is now one of the world’s most popular open-source AI models, with the latest version, Qwen3.7-Plus, launched earlier this month.

Agents move into business and the home

To accelerate AI adoption, Alibaba.com launched Accio Work, a team of AI agents designed for small and medium-sized businesses in Malaysia.

The tool can independently perform tasks such as market research, product development, sourcing, product listings, marketing, and managing online stores.

Unlike traditional AI tools that only provide answers, Accio Work can take a user’s instructions and complete the required tasks.

According to Shawn Yang, General Manager for the APAC Region at Alibaba.com, AI has moved beyond being a future technology and has now become essential infrastructure that is changing how businesses operate worldwide.

Later this year, Alibaba Cloud plans to launch agentic AI services for its European clientele. After Germany and the UK, it launched a new cloud area in France, making it its third in Europe.

The shift toward ordinary users is accompanied by a wider trend at home.

A strategy comprising 17 additional stages was issued by China’s Ministry of Commerce and seven other ministries with the goal of integrating AI into commodities, services, and retail through smart devices, robotics, infrastructure, subsidies, and standards.

The ministry said that speeding up the development of “AI Plus Consumption” will create new sources of growth, improve consumer experiences, and increase spending capacity.

The goal is to bring AI into millions of homes and businesses, focusing on robotics, AI assistants, smart cars, and AI phones.

Curbs tighten on US models in Hong Kong

As China widens its choice of consumer AI, US tech curbs are making things harder for American firms in the region.

JPMorgan Chase has stopped its Hong Kong staff from using Anthropic’s AI models, the newest Wall Street bank to do so.

The decision follows a similar one by Goldman Sachs.

Reports say JPMorgan workers in Hong Kong can no longer reach Claude models through the bank’s list of approved large language models, with a source familiar with the matter pointing to the wording in Anthropic’s licensing agreement.

The restrictions come as the US increases controls on advanced AI technologies.

Anthropic has already blocked foreign nationals from accessing its Fable 5 and Mythos 5 AI models following a US export-control order.

Although US-developed AI models are not available in mainland China, Hong Kong has traditionally followed different regulations, with access largely determined by the policies of American technology companies.

Now, traders are placing bets on the outcome of this.

“Which company has best AI model end of June?” a bet on Polymarket, gives Alibaba less than 1% and Anthropic 95% odds.

A wager on “Which AI company will have the best coding model at the end of 2026?” on Kalshi places Alibaba below 1% and Anthropic at 59%.

If you're reading this, you’re already ahead. Stay there with our newsletter.