Alibaba Chairman Joe Tsai: AI competition enters 'wisdom for use' era, full-stack capabilities accelerate industry deployment
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At the 2026 Yunqi Conference held on September 22, Alibaba Group Chairman Joe Tsai delivered a speech centered on the conference theme 'Wisdom for Use' (智以致用), articulating Alibaba's core judgment on AI industry development. Tsai emphasized that the focus of AI development should shift from technological imagination to large-scale deployment in real-world scenarios. He noted that while the industry has witnessed technological breakthroughs in large models, embodied intelligence, and world models, technology is merely a starting point; AI's true significance lies in its application across industries to enhance social productivity. Tsai stated that Alibaba is firmly building a five-layer full-stack AI system covering chips, cloud infrastructure, large models, model services, and intelligent agent applications, with all components working synergistically to rapidly convert technology into industrial results. Facing global market uncertainty, Tsai argued that the more complex the environment, the more important it is to adhere to open cooperation and pragmatic innovation, asserting that technology does not automatically generate value and must be rooted in industry and partnered with collaborators to unleash AI productivity.
Source report
Hangzhou, September 22 — Speaking at the 2026 Apsara Conference today, Alibaba Group Chairman Joe Tsai emphasized that the development of artificial intelligence must pivot from technological imagination to large-scale deployment in real-world scenarios, aligning with this year's conference theme, "Intelligence for Action."
Tsai noted that Alibaba Cloud was founded 17 years ago, and the Apsara Conference has evolved from a developer gathering into a major global technology exchange platform. He credited Hangzhou's innovation ecosystem for continuously nurturing Alibaba's technological exploration.
Against the backdrop of the AI wave, Tsai acknowledged that the industry has witnessed successive breakthroughs in large language models, embodied intelligence, and world models. However, he stressed that technology is only the starting point — the true value of AI lies in its application across industries to meaningfully enhance social productivity.
Tsai stated that Alibaba is firmly committed to building a five-layer, full-stack AI system, covering:
- Chips
- Cloud infrastructure
- Large language models
- Model services
- Agent-based applications
He explained that these layers are integrated and coordinated to rapidly translate technology into tangible industrial outcomes.
Addressing global market uncertainties, Tsai argued that the more complex the environment, the more important it is to uphold open cooperation and pragmatic innovation. "Technology does not create value on its own," he said. "Only by embedding it in industries and working with partners can we unlock the productive power of AI."
Source
新浪财经-财经首页Eastern
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Alibaba Chairman Tsai: AI must shift from breakthroughs to real-world value creation