Alibaba Launches AI-Powered Search Engine for International Merchants

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Alibaba.com President Zhang Kuo on stage during day one of Web Summit 2024 at the MEO Arena in Lisbon, Portugal, on Nov. 12. Photo: Web Summit

(Lisbon, Portugal) — Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. launched an artificial intelligence-powered search engine for international merchants on Tuesday, as the Chinese tech giant looks to a new revenue stream for its cross-border e-commerce business.

Accio, a business-to-business search engine, helps small and midsize merchants locate and connect with global suppliers by allowing natural language and multi-modal searches such as spreadsheets and photos, said Zhang Kuo, president of Alibaba.com, the company’s international wholesale marketplace, at Web Summit 2024 in Lisbon, Portugal.

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Alibaba launched Accio, an AI-powered search engine to assist small and midsize merchants in global e-commerce sourcing.
Accio utilizes natural language processing and features Wikipedia-like info pages, aiming to streamline logistics and provide robust support.
The tool is free during its trial period, will transition to a subscription model, and reflects Alibaba's strategy to boost international revenue amidst rising competition.

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Who’s Who

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.: Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is a Chinese tech giant that launched an AI-powered search engine called Accio for international merchants. Accio helps small and midsize merchants connect with global suppliers through natural language and multi-modal searches. This tool aims to streamline sourcing, logistics, shipping, and customer support. It was developed primarily using Alibaba's proprietary large language model, Tongyi Qianwen, and will eventually be subscription-based. Alibaba is focusing on growing its merchant user base and international revenue streams.

PDD Holdings Inc.: PDD Holdings Inc. is a competitor of Alibaba Group in the e-commerce market. The company is known for operating the e-commerce platform Pinduoduo, which emphasizes a social shopping experience that leverages group buying deals. In the context of the article, Alibaba is facing rising competition from PDD Holdings and other companies like ByteDance, especially in the Chinese market, necessitating strategies like launching Accio to revitalize growth.

ByteDance Ltd.: ByteDance Ltd., the parent company of Douyin, is one of the competitors mentioned in the article as affecting Alibaba Group's market landscape. Douyin is a popular social media platform in China, similar to TikTok, and is part of the rising competition Alibaba faces in the e-commerce sector. The rivalry from ByteDance and others has prompted Alibaba to seek new international revenue streams and innovate its offerings.

AliExpress: AliExpress is a retail e-commerce platform that is part of Alibaba International Digital Commerce Group. It contributes to Alibaba's cross-border business growth, which saw a 32% year-on-year revenue increase to 29.3 billion yuan ($4 billion) in the June quarter. The platform plays a role in Alibaba's strategy to expand its merchant user base and international revenue streams amidst rising competition.

Lazada: Lazada is part of Alibaba International Digital Commerce Group, alongside Alibaba.com and AliExpress. It is a retail e-commerce platform contributing to the group's performance. In the June quarter, the group's revenue grew by 32% year-on-year to 29.3 billion yuan ($4 billion), driven by strong cross-border business growth.

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