Alibaba partner and AutoNavi (Gaode) Chairman Liu Zhenfei recently posted on Alibaba’s internal network, documenting a group team-building activity for management planting rice seedlings in Hangzhou. According to Sina Tech, participants included Jack Ma, CEO Wu Yongming,邵晓锋 (Shao Xiaofeng), Jiang Fan, Wu Zeming, Jiang Fang, as well as Ant Group Chairman Jing Xiandong and CEO Han Xinyi. More than ten people rolled up their pants and worked in the paddy fields, planting only about half a mu (approx. 0.08 acre) of waterlogged field in the morning. Alibaba Chief Scientist Zhou Jingren also appeared at the scene, once again confirming that previous rumors about his departure were untrue.
In the post, Liu Zhenfei used farming as an analogy, stating that farming must seize the season and endure the grinding process. People close to Alibaba said that this collective team-building activity was intended to send a signal outward: the management remains united and optimistic, firmly believing in the company’s development and the prospects of AI. This event comes against the backdrop of Alibaba’s announcement in February 2025 that it would invest 380 billion yuan in AI infrastructure. The company is currently in a high-intensity investment period across areas such as big models, AI cloud computing, chips, Qwen C-end products, multimodal capabilities, and AI agents.