Alibaba to invest RMB10 billion in 2020, elevating Tmall Genie user experiences

Alibaba plans to invest RMB10 billion in 2020 in order to strengthen the Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT) ecosystem centred around its smart speaker Tmall Genie and elevate the Tmall Genie user experience.

The investment will see Alibaba integrate more content and services from Alibaba’s diverse ecosystem such as entertainment, healthcare, education, and online shopping. Under this initiative, mini-apps on Alipay will be integrated with Tmall Genie from 1 July onwards. Consumers can also watch Taobao Live - the live streaming of merchant sales on Taobao - through Tmall Genie’s screen.

“By tapping into Alibaba’s diverse ecosystem and cutting-edge technology, we are committed to bringing in more unique experiences to our Tmall Genie users through enriched content and services,” said Ku Wei, general manager of Alibaba Cloud IoT.

In addition, the investment will see more leading AIoT technologies developed in-house, including IoT operating systems, edge computing, and visual and voice AI.. Tmall Genie will also share its latest AIoT technologies, vertical market insights, product design skillsets, content, and service capabilities with partners to co-develop intelligent products.

Apart from the investment, Tmall Genie also announced its partnership with KFC China to co-develop a KFC-themed Tmall Genie that carries the KFC Colonel figure design.

Consumers can also order selected breakfast options at KFC by viewing and choosing from the menu on the screen of their smart speakers. They can complete their order through a voice payment function, and then pick up the orders from over 5,000 KFC stores offering breakfast across the country from the second half of 2020 onwards.

“We are also partnering with brands to offer our leading AIoT technology, design ideas, and go-to-market advice, so they can be empowered to explore opportunities in the AIoT era, and more smart products can be rolled out to the market to enlighten consumers’ daily lives too,” Ku explained.

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