Advertisement
Alibaba to deploy AI-powered sourcing engine to boost online trade for global merchants
- The AI-driven sourcing tool will be accessible to merchants from September via a mobile app and the Alibaba.com website
Reading Time:2 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
Ben Jiangin Beijing
The international arm of Alibaba Group Holding is ramping up the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) by deploying an application that will help merchants on its international wholesale platforms and various third-party marketplaces buy and sell goods online.
Advertisement
Alibaba’s International Digital Commerce Group (AIDC) will make an “AI-powered conversational sourcing engine” available to merchants from September to simplify global business-to-business e-commerce, the group said in a statement on Wednesday. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.
The AI-driven sourcing tool will be accessible through a dedicated mobile app and Alibaba.com’s official website, according to the company. A sourcing professional can simply communicate via voice input with the tool, which would help streamline how a buyer is matched with suitable products and suppliers under the platform.
“I believe our AI-powered conversational sourcing engine will further supercharge the growth of Alibaba International Digital Commerce Group by transforming the way tens of millions of global small and medium-sized enterprises operate within the US$20-trillion B2B e-commerce industry,” Alibaba.com president Zhang Kuo said on Wednesday. “The sourcing engine will also be used outside Alibaba’s ecosystem for merchants on third-party platforms.”
Advertisement