Jack Ma has returned to a more active role at Alibaba, marking his most direct involvement since stepping down as chairman in 2019, according to people familiar with the company.

Alibaba, the Hangzhou-based tech and ecommerce firm, saw Ma retreat from public view after an antitrust investigation in 2020 that led to regulatory pressure on China’s tech giants.

Ma is now influencing major decisions, including a reported plan to spend up to 50 billion yuan (US$7 billion) on subsidies to compete with rivals JD.com and Meituan.

He is also seeking regular updates on Alibaba’s AI efforts and its cloud business.

Alibaba’s market share in China’s food delivery market was 43% as of July, trailing Meituan’s 47%, according to Goldman Sachs.

Alibaba reported a 26% rise in cloud revenue in August, though its market capitalization remains less than half its peak.

🔗 Source: Bloomberg

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