Alibaba Group will invest an additional $1 billion to fuel further growth at Aliyun, its cloud computing arm, a testament to cloud computing as an important growth area for Alibaba.
Article continues below
The additional funding will be used to expand Aliyun's international presence, extend and support an alliance-based global cloud computing ecosystem, and for the development of new cloud and big data solutions that enable customers to increase productivity, lower costs and scale quickly as their businesses grow.
"Aliyun has become a world-class cloud computing service platform that is the market leader in China, bearing the fruits of our investment over the past six years. As the physical and digital are becoming increasingly integrated, Aliyun will serve as an essential engine in this new economy," said Daniel Zhang, CEO of Alibaba Group.
"This additional $1 billion investment is just the beginning; our hope is for Aliyun to continually empower customers and partners with new capabilities, and help companies upgrade their basic infrastructure. We want to enable businesses to connect directly with consumers and drive productivity using data. Ultimately, our goal is to help businesses successfully transition from an era of information technology to data technology."
Aliyun is focused on bringing the benefits of user-friendly, cost-efficient and secure cloud computing to businesses around the world. Part of the additional $1 billion investment will contribute to further international expansion for Aliyun as part of this globalization strategy.
Aliyun currently provides public cloud computing services in five data centers in China and in Hong Kong, and earlier this year launched its first overseas data center in Silicon Valley. Part of this new investment will be used to set up a global network of Aliyun cloud computing centers in the Middle East, Singapore, Japan and Europe.
The additional funding also underpins Aliyun's vision of a comprehensive cloud ecosystem that ensures businesses can be powered by cloud computing, with peace of mind, from day one of their operations.
One initiative is the international Marketplace Alliance Program, which is designed to provide global users with one-stop cloud services and contribute to the worldwide development of cloud computing. The first wave of alliance partners – Intel, Singtel, Dubai-based Meraas, Equinix, PCCW, LINKBYNET, and Hong Kong-based Towngas – cover North America, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. ■