Alibaba to integrate Qwen AI with Taobao, launch agentic shopping, source says

Alibaba is preparing to unveil the integration of its AI platform Qwen and online marketplace Taobao, a move that seeks to ‌drive shopping with conversations rather than keyword searches, according to a source familiar with the decision.The move will enable consumers to browse, compare and purchase items via the Qwen app by chatting with the ⁠artificial intelligence agent, rather than manually navigating product listings.The Qwen app will have access to the entire Taobao and Tmall catalog of over 4 billion products, backed by a "skills library" capable of managing logistics and after-sales services. It will also offer shopping recommendations based on users' order history and shopping preferences.Inside Taobao, Alibaba will ‌launch ⁠a Qwen-powered AI shopping assistant, which includes tools for virtual try-ons and 30-day price tracking.Alibaba's push into AI-driven shopping highlights a gap between Chinese and Western e-commerce platforms; China's ⁠model allows AI to be embedded directly into live transactions. In the US, platforms are more fragmented: Amazon has used ⁠AI to improve shopping within its marketplace but remains cautious about full autonomy. Canada's Shopify allows the ⁠use of external AI agents rather than running an integrated consumer AI platform.