Alibaba chairman Joe Tsai credits China’s AI edge to power grid, open-source models

Alibaba chairman Joe Tsai has credited China’s advantages in artificial intelligence to investments in its power grid and open-source models. He stated that such massive investments have provided ample supply and low costs for the energy-intensive AI sector. China’s industrial depth highlights vast potential for AI applications, Tsai said.

Alibaba Group Holding chairman Joe Tsai spoke at the China Development Forum in Beijing, crediting China’s edge in the AI industry to massive investments in its power grid, open-source models, and industrial depth. This investment highlights China’s vast potential for AI applications, according to Tsai. Published on 2026-03-22T19:46:56+08:00, the South China Morning Post article quotes him saying: “In the AI industry, which is extremely energy-intensive, such massive investment has directly translated into advantages in ample supply and [low] cost, forming a solid foundation for us.” Tsai added that the ultimate goal of developing AI is not to build the most cutting-edge models but to proliferate its application to benefit society. Keywords from the article include Qwen, Li Lecheng, US, Sylvia Ma, Lei Jun, AI, Xiaomi, and Alibaba Group Holding, but the focus remains on Tsai’s remarks about power infrastructure enabling low-cost AI development.

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