Alibaba shares climbed 3.1% in premarket trading in the US after data showed the company increasing its dominance in China’s artificial‑intelligence and cloud‑computing market. According to a LatePost report, Alibaba Cloud captured roughly 35.8% of the AI‑cloud market in the first half of 2025, exceeding the combined share of the three nearest competitors. AI‑cloud revenue totaled ¥22.3 billion, positioning the company as a clear-cut leader.
The company said it is developing its Qwen app as a comprehensive AI agent that integrates Alibaba ecosystem services. Qwen offers features such as price comparison on Taobao, navigation via Amap and other services free of charge, unlike ChatGPT. Jefferies analyst Thomas Chong noted that a range of BABA apps, including Taobao and Alipay, will be integrated with Qwen for various use cases.
Jefferies forecasts the AI‑cloud industry revenue to skyrocket 149% year‑on‑year, with Alibaba holding a 40% share in 2025. The analyst expects Alibaba Cloud to account for 80% of the industry’s incremental revenue growth in 2026 and reach a 60% market share. If the high growth rate is maintained, the company could deliver triple‑digit growth next year.
