Alibaba Takes Major Step to Link Shopping to Main AI App

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. plans to link its flagship online shopping and travel services to its AI app, taking its biggest step yet to build Qwen into its one-stop artificial intelligence platform for consumers.

China’s online retail leader aims to connect Taobao, Alipay, travel service Fliggy and Amap to the Qwen app starting Thursday. The idea is to eventually help Qwen’s 100 million users shop, book travel and pay for services via a single platform with the help of AI. The newly integrated functions are now available for public testing in China.