Alibaba forges Token Foundry as it hammers AI ambitions into shape
Alibaba consolidates key AI teams under CEO Eddie Wu and appoints Qwen leader Zhou Jingren as chief scientist
Alibaba Group Holding on Monday established a new unit called Token Foundry, consolidating key model-development teams as the Chinese technology giant steps up efforts to commercialise artificial intelligence and align its businesses around a unified AI strategy.
The new division brings together Alibaba’s Tongyi Lab and Future Life Lab and will be led directly by CEO Eddie Wu Yongming, according to people familiar with the matter.
Future Life Lab, previously housed within Taobao and Tmall Group, developed projects including Happy Horse, a video-generation model, and Happy Oyster, an open-world AI model.
The unit was overseen by Zheng Bo, chief scientist and vice-president of technology at Taobao and Tmall Group, who also serves as chief technology officer (CTO) of Alimama, Alibaba’s digital marketing arm.
Zhang Di, who previously led development of Kuaishou Technology’s video-generation model Kling, rejoined Alibaba in November 2025 to run Future Life Lab, reporting to Zheng.
As part of the restructuring, Zhou Jingren will assume the role of Alibaba chief scientist and head a newly established Alibaba AI Future Research Institute, which will focus on frontier AI research and next-generation technological breakthroughs.