Alibaba founder Jack Ma has returned to mainland China in a rare public visit that comes as Beijing tries to restore confidence in the entrepreneurial class after a years-long crackdown on the tech sector.
Ma travelled to his hometown of Hangzhou, where Alibaba has its headquarters, to visit the Alibaba-funded Yungu School, according to the school, which mostly educates Alibaba employees’ children.
In an article posted on its WeChat account on Monday, the school quoted Ma talking about the challenges artificial intelligence poses to education. The former English teacher and educational philanthropist discussed the need for educational reform if children were to compete with AI in the future.
Beijing will hope the publicity around Ma’s rare trip to mainland China can reinvigorate confidence for entrepreneurs after the end of both a bruising regulatory crackdown and zero-Covid restrictions.
“For business, the key will be if Ma gets taken off mute. Being physically in China is one thing, but will we get to hear from him again, and can he talk about anything other than rural education and farming?” said Duncan Clark, founder of Beijing-based BDA consultancy and author of Alibaba: The House That Jack Ma Built.
The detention of China Renaissance founder Bao Fan has in recent weeks sent jitters through the business world just as Beijing is trying to promote investment in the country.
Billionaire Ma was once a high-profile figure in China, giving freewheeling interviews to the media and taking to the stage in flamboyant dress and performing rock music at company galas.
Just days before the blockbuster $37bn initial public offering of fintech group Ant Financial in November 2020, Ma gave a speech in which he attacked China’s financial watchdogs and banks. The speech led President Xi Jinping to force the abandonment of Ant’s listing and triggered a crackdown on the country’s largest tech groups.
Since then, Ma has shied away from media attention and increasingly spent his time outside China.
The Financial Times reported that Ma had been living in Tokyo for almost six months in November, conducting regular trips to the US and Israel. Ma has also spent time in Hong Kong in recent months, playing golf, according to people familiar with his activities.
Government officials in Zhejiang province, home to Hangzhou, have stepped up their charm offensive with Alibaba, dispatching top local Communist party cadres to the company’s headquarters and signing a strategic co-operation agreement.
Alibaba’s Theory Bureau – which prepares Ma’s speeches – were told of Ma’s possible visit to China only last week, a source there said. Ma had been reluctant to set a time for his return because “the trust and relationship between the government and the entrepreneur need more time to rebuild”, said a provincial official from Zhejiang who worked with Alibaba. Ma will also meet executives in the country for the China Development Forum, the official said. The CDF, which ends on Monday, has attracted global executives and officials.
Ma’s return to mainland China comes as the future of Ant Financial remains unclear. He relinquished control of Ant Group in January, vastly reducing his stake in the company. A change in control could pave the way for a listing in Hong Kong or Shanghai.