What’s new: Ant Group Co. Ltd. has launched a life assistant app powered by artificial intelligence (AI), tapping the nascent technology as the Chinese fintech giant seeks new revenue sources following a major overhaul of its business.
The Zhixiaobao app, powered by Ant Group’s large language model (LLM) BaiLing, can help users complete tasks such as ordering meals, hailing taxis, booking tickets, and finding dining and entertainment options through text or voice chat, the company said Thursday. Zhixiaobao is also accessible through the Alipay payment app.
The background: The company, which is affiliated to Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., is pushing ahead in AI, payments and international expansion following a bruising regulatory crackdown that began in November 2020, two days before it was to launch a world record-setting $34.5 billion IPO.
The Hangzhou-based firm was eventually fined 7.1 billion yuan ($984 million) last July at the end of a years-long government-led restructuring.
In a revamp announced in March, Ant Group’s overseas unit Ant International, the database operation OceanBase and Ant Digital Technologies will become three independently run businesses, with their own boards of directors.
The company spent a record 21.2 billion yuan on research and development last year, according to its sustainability report. It won approval from the Chinese government last year to use its BaiLing model to provide services to the public.
Contact reporter Kelsey Cheng (kelseycheng@caixin.com) and editor Jonathan Breen (jonathanbreen@caixin.com)
