Chinese IT giant Alibaba has launched a new business platform featuring AI agents
The company's stock has risen 40% from the low it hit in June
Shares of Chinese online retailer and tech giant Alibaba posted their best gain in Hong Kong trading in more than two weeks and jumped nearly 3% in the U.S. Alibaba’s subsidiary, Ant Group, announced the launch of the country’s first “agency trading platform,” which the company claims will enable sellers to transition from digital operations to AI-driven operations.
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Alibaba shares rose 5% on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, but lost some momentum toward the close and ended the day up 3.7%. Shares traded in the U.S. gained about 2.8% in the first few minutes after the market opened. Investors are viewing the stock positively ahead of the company’s quarterly earnings report, expected on Thursday, August 20, Bloomberg noted.
"Agent-based commerce is set for rapid growth over the next 6–12 months. AI agents will become the new interface connecting hundreds of millions of users with tens of millions of sellers, unveiling a new, intent-based commercial ecosystem,” said Ant Group CEO Cyril Khan, as quoted in the press release.
AI agents are designed to independently carry out tasks based on user commands. The launch of the new Alipay platform followed the debut of the AI agent Ah Bao in June—an interface that allows users to pay bills, order coffee, or search for electric vehicle charging stations, according to Bloomberg. The agency believes the new products are intended to make Alibaba’s services more appealing to users amid weak domestic consumption in China. Alibaba CEO Eddie Wu is divesting non-core assets, making AI and cloud computing his top strategic priorities with the goal of reaching $100 billion in AI revenue within five years, Bloomberg previously reported.
Since hitting a low in June, Alibaba shares have risen by more than 40%, recouping some of the losses from the sell-off earlier this year. Investment funds are now shifting from Tencent Holdings shares to Alibaba shares—a move that began after Tencent reported a twofold increase in capital expenditures, according to Bloomberg. At the same time, the market views Alibaba as a company with clearer growth prospects thanks to its cloud business, Stephen Leung, an executive director at UOB Kay Hian in Hong Kong, told the agency.
This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor
