The Alibaba founder highlights ‘changes’ in the company’s development as it embarks on an ambitious AI strategy
Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba Group Holding, responded to the resignation letter of a long-term employee on Tuesday, a rare move for the tech veteran who stepped back from all corporate roles in 2019.
In a response published on Alibaba’s internal website, Ma addressed the concerns raised by a 15-year employee, who criticised the “big company disease” afflicting the Chinese e-commerce giant in an extensive internal letter.
The employee, a product development leader on the team responsible for enterprise collaboration tool DingTalk, reflected fondly on his early years at Alibaba and praised the company’s core values, but sharply critiqued what he saw as various internal issues. They included unsuccessful acquisitions, unclear strategies, undesirable hiring practices, as well as unfair performance assessments and promotion mechanisms.
Still, the letter, posted on Monday, concluded on an optimistic note: “Artificial intelligence is coming, embrace this era … After spending 15 years with you, I hope you thrive for centuries. Alibaba, stay strong!”
