Alibaba plans $10.2B share issuance to fund its global AI drive

Chinese tech giant Alibaba announced on Sunday that it plans to raise around HK$80 billion ($10.2 billion) through a new share issuance in Hong Kong, with the funds aimed at supporting its global artificial intelligence push amid growing competition with the U.S.

The Hangzhou-based firm has been ploughing tens of billions of dollars into AI, with its shareholders eager to see how it will monetize the huge investments.

"The Equity Placement is being undertaken to extend the Company's global AI leadership," Alibaba said in a statement.

The company intends to use all of the net proceeds to invest in its "full stack AI capabilities, including to expand and enhance its AI infrastructure", it said.

Alibaba on Thursday announced nearly 269 billion yuan ($40 billion) in revenue in its most recent quarter, marking a 9% year-over-year increase, boosted by the global artificial intelligence frenzy driving demand for its products.

The firm is known for its open-source "Qwen" AI models, which have gained popularity with developers worldwide.