64 h. ago Alibaba’s Qwen app becomes the world’s fastest growing AI app as MAUs surge 149%

Alibaba Group Holding’s new flagship artificial intelligence app Qwen was the fastest growing AI app in the world in November, according to third-party data released on Wednesday. Qwen recorded the highest growth in monthly active users (MAU) among AI products globally at 149 per cent, data compiled by AI product popularity tracker Aicpb.com showed. Its MAUs for the app reached 18.34 million, making it the world’s 24th most used AI app just two weeks into its public beta. Qwen’s success stemmed...

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7 d. ago Alibaba Cloud team wins top AI award for breakthrough in model efficiency

A research team led by Alibaba Cloud was the only group from China to receive a top award at this year’s NeurIPS, or the Conference on Neural Information Processing Systems, billed as the artificial intelligence industry’s most prestigious annual event. The research could lead to drastic improvements in the efficiency of large language models (LLMs), significantly reducing both training and inference costs for Alibaba Group Holding’s next generation of Qwen models without sacrificing...

Events

1 week ago AI Singapore picks Alibaba’s Qwen over Meta to drive new regional language model

AI Singapore (AISG) – a national programme by the city state of Singapore to accelerate the adoption of artificial intelligence – has chosen to base its latest large language model on Alibaba’s Qwen, in a significant win for the Chinese technology giant as it promotes its AI services in Southeast Asia. AI Singapore, designed to enhance the city state’s national AI capabilities, had released a new model, Qwen-SEA-LION-v4, based on Alibaba’s Qwen3-32B foundation model to better address the...

Politics

1 week ago AI Singapore picks Alibaba’s Qwen to drive new regional language model

AI Singapore (AISG) – a national programme by the city state of Singapore to accelerate the adoption of artificial intelligence – has chosen to base its latest large language model on Alibaba’s Qwen, in a significant win for the Chinese technology giant as it promotes its AI services in Southeast Asia. AI Singapore, designed to enhance the city state’s national AI capabilities, had released a new model, Qwen-SEA-LION-v4, based on Alibaba’s Qwen3-32B foundation model to better address the...

Politics

1 week ago Alibaba’s Qwen chatbot sets record by topping 10 million downloads in debut week

Alibaba Group Holding’s new multipurpose artificial intelligence app, Qwen, recorded more than 10 million downloads in the first week of its public beta launch, faster than OpenAI’s ChatGPT or DeepSeek, the company said on Monday. The strong debut of Qwen, launched last week, augured well for the Chinese tech conglomerate’s efforts to establish a major AI assistant that would rival the performance of Google’s Gemini chatbot and ChatGPT, both of which are not available on the mainland. The Hong...

Politics

2 w. ago Alibaba bets on ‘everything app’ Qwen to define AI era for global consumers

Alibaba Group Holding’s new multipurpose artificial intelligence consumer app, Qwen, has the potential to become China’s “super-app” in the AI era in the same way Tencent Holdings’ WeChat defined the mobile internet age, analysts say. Powered by Alibaba Cloud’s own model series of the same name, Qwen quickly jumped to fourth overall on Apple’s app store for free apps in Hong Kong and fifth in mainland China on its second day of beta testing. The app, billed as “the best personal AI assistant”,...

Politics

2 w. ago Alibaba’s Qwen app challenges AI subscription models with free access

Alibaba Group Holding has officially launched its multipurpose artificial intelligence app, Qwen, promising a “free-for-all” gateway for consumers to access a variety of AI-powered services, from mapping to shopping. Qwen, powered by Alibaba Cloud’s open-source model series of the same name and marketed as “the best personal AI assistant”, serves not only as a chatbot but also as a comprehensive AI tool designed to meet user needs in both professional and personal contexts, the company said on...

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2 w. ago Alibaba revamps chatbot amid US ‘panic’ over firm’s AI progress

Alibaba Group Holding has begun a revamp of its artificial intelligence chatbot in a move to match OpenAI’s ChatGPT, according to app store information and media reports, as some observers see “panic” in Silicon Valley over the Chinese tech giant’s rapid AI progress. The new chatbot app, Qwen, an upgraded and renamed version of the previous app, Tongyi, became available on Android and Apple app stores on Friday. Alibaba dubbed the updated app the “most powerful official AI assistant for its...

Politics

3 w. ago How Singapore’s green shipping vision is gaining traction, with China’s help

Singapore’s ambitions to lead the world in green shipping are picking up steam, with a new agreement with China poised to enhance the city state’s decarbonisation efforts and cement its role as a key hub for alternative fuels. The partnership, signed last month, aims to establish a digital and green shipping corridor between the two countries, and promote maritime decarbonisation, innovation and greater supply chain efficiency. The deal could give Singapore a competitive edge by plugging it...

Politics

3 w. ago Fun or nuisance? Singapore’s pickleball fever leaves neighbours on edge

Under the floodlights of a street football pitch dotted with cement-covered potholes, 69-year-old retiree Lilian Sek beams as she whacks a hollow orange plastic ball through the night sky in the southern neighbourhood of Telok Blangah in Singapore. Behind her, a laminated sign on the back of the court reads “Please lower your volume” and reminds players of the quiet hours between 10.30pm and 7am for those living in the public housing flats that overlook the court. Sek, a former administrative...

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