Jack Ma wants AI to serve, not 'lord' humans

jack ma weibo.png — Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma believes AI should protect human livelihoods. Photo: Weibo

In a rare appearance before Alibaba employees, Jack Ma argued that artificial intelligence (AI) should be “tailored” to serve humans and make their lives better. It should protect livelihoods, not be “lords.”

“We’re not trying to make machines more human. We want them to understand humans, think like humans, and do things we can’t do,” he said. According to the billionaire, it’s the responsibility of tech people to make sure AI knows and supports humans.

From a giant e-commerce empire, Alibaba has been pivoting into the field of AI in recent years. The company has introduced the Qwen series of AI models, attracting widespread attention, competing with OpenAI and DeepSeek.

In February, CEO Eddie Wu shared that the company's main goal now is artificial general intelligence (AGI), which is also the general goal of the AI industry to create AI systems with human-like intelligence.

The shift to AI has saved Alibaba from the brink after years of turmoil. Jack Ma has largely disappeared from public view in recent years, appearing only occasionally at the company he co-founded and posting on internal forums.

But he returned, joining other prominent figures in China’s tech scene at a conference hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping that signaled Beijing’s support for the private sector, a key factor in reviving the world’s second-largest economy.

“Technology is not just for conquering the oceans and the stars. Technology is for protecting the flame of human passion,” said Jack Ma.

(According to Bloomberg)