Alibaba has introduced a significant upgrade to its AI chatbot, unveiling a new consumer-focused Qwen app that signals a renewed push into the competitive artificial intelligence market. The updated app, powered by the most advanced version of Alibaba’s Qwen large language model, is now available in China as both a mobile application and a website. The company said an international version will be released later.
According to Alibaba, the enhanced Qwen app can generate a full research report and create a polished multi-slide PowerPoint presentation within seconds using a single command. The app has entered public beta testing and is being promoted as the most powerful personal AI assistant built on Alibaba’s latest model technology.
A Notable Strategic Shift for Alibaba
The launch marks a notable change in Alibaba’s approach to AI. While the company has strong capabilities through its cloud division, it has historically focused on enterprise clients rather than building a mass-market AI assistant to rival ChatGPT-style applications. This shift places Alibaba in more direct competition with Chinese consumer AI leaders.
The upgrade arrives as China’s AI industry undergoes intense price competition, largely driven by DeepSeek’s low-cost strategy for AI compute and app development. Competitors across the sector have been forced to accelerate development cycles and reduce pricing to keep pace.
Renewed Focus on Consumer Engagement
Alibaba previously operated several consumer-facing AI products, including Tongyi and AI assistant features in its Quark browser. Qwen replaces the earlier Tongyi brand, representing the company’s first major attempt to gain meaningful traction in the consumer AI market.
Despite Alibaba being among the earliest Chinese firms to release a public AI assistant in late 2023, adoption has remained limited. Data from Aicpb.com shows the Tongyi app had 6.96 million monthly active users in September, far behind market leader ByteDance’s Doubao with 150 million. DeepSeek had 73.4 million users, while Tencent reported 64.2 million.
The new Qwen app aims to close that gap by delivering more advanced capabilities and a polished user experience, positioning Alibaba for a stronger role in China’s rapidly evolving AI landscape.
Rajani Baburajan
