On January 15, the Qwen App announced its full integration with Alibaba ecosystem businesses such as Taobao, Alipay, Taobao Flash Sales, Fliggy, and Amap, enabling AI-powered functions like ordering takeout, shopping, and booking flights, and opened testing to all users. Simultaneously, this upgrade will introduce over 400 new AI service functions.
Acting as a super AI gateway, Alibaba is pioneering ecosystem synergy. The role of the AI assistant is no longer confined to simple Q&A; it is now designed to genuinely interconnect Alibaba's business systems, execute long, cross-application tasks, and enter actual transaction chains.
The battle for the AI gateway became explicitly clear starting with the Doubao phone. Although it was only trialed on a small scale with partner hardware, the ripples it created far exceeded expectations.
Current smartphones are still far from being truly AI-enabled. Smaller manufacturers have made numerous attempts but are destined to be outpaced by internet giants, especially "competition kings" like Alibaba and ByteDance.
ByteDance has continuously experimented with various hardware entry points, making its choice to partner with branded phones a logical step. In contrast, Alibaba possesses inherent ecosystem advantages, making its internal integration for AI transformation a natural progression.
The competition for the gateway in the AI era, while seemingly starting with simple "help me" tasks, is not merely about traffic channels. It is fundamentally about creating intelligent hubs that may deeply participate in user decision-making.
With traditional gateways, users input specific keywords to get targeted results, leading to fragmented decision-making across different apps. In the AI era, user requests are simplified; the AI then deconstructs these needs, generates solutions, and propels services forward, achieving the true essence of "AI doing things for you."
The tide of the era is unstoppable. Whether it's ByteDance or Alibaba, the best course is to proactively hit the accelerator.
The Doubao phone caused a significant stir, while Qwen's "one-command" assistance exemplifies the major players' rivalry. These giants are never short on resources; what they seek is a precise strategic move, ultimately pointing towards a grand battle for ecosystem dominance.
Whoever successfully uses AI to capture the "last mile" of user connection will likely command the next iteration of the internet.
Each player has its distinct advantages and is continuously fortifying its moat. Beyond Doubao and Alibaba, Tencent's Yuanbao leverages the massive traffic inlets of WeChat and QQ, holding great potential for social scenario integration. Although DeepSeek has seen some retraction, it remains a key player at the table.
Who will ultimately stand out? Internally, success depends not only on the superiority of the underlying model technology but also on the refinement of the product experience, the depth of ecosystem synergy, and the ability to grasp users' core scenario needs.
Externally, the future AI super gateway also presents challenges that platforms, hardware manufacturers, and regulatory bodies must collectively address.
It is not just the frontline competing giants; all stakeholders need to collaboratively discuss and establish a new set of rules and order suited for the AI era. The key to transitioning from a gateway battle to an ecosystem war, while obtaining explicit user authorization and ensuring compliant and secure personal information handling, lies in finding the right balance.
For AI and major consumer applications to seamlessly integrate and interconnect, platforms must strike a balance: they need to protect the impetus for commercial innovation while ensuring that AI technology development ultimately benefits consumers and meets their genuine needs.
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