China's Alibaba launches international data centre push

Chinese internet giant Alibaba announced plans on Wednesday to bolster its global data center presence, with a focus on expanding in Europe and the Middle East. Hangzhou-based Alibaba, a key player in China's artificial intelligence sector, unveiled a multi-pronged strategy to strengthen its cloud infrastructure over the next year.

The company will establish its inaugural cloud regions in Turkey, Finland, and the Netherlands, while also expanding its data center footprint in Malaysia, Germany, the United Arab Emirates, France, and Hong Kong. The announcement preceded a critical meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Donald Trump in Washington, D.C., where the two leaders were anticipated to address trade disputes.

Both nations are engaged in a tech power struggle, particularly in sectors like semiconductors, AI, and robotics. Alibaba's CEO Eddie Wu disclosed that the firm plans to develop an AI model with a parameter range of five to 10 trillion, potentially surpassing the existing largest Chinese model in scale. Alibaba aims to secure over 20 gigawatts of global data center capacity by 2032, Wu stated during the company's annual conference in Hangzhou.

Additionally, the company unveiled a cutting-edge AI chip, the Zhenwu V900, claiming it to be three times more powerful than its predecessor, the Zhenwu M890, which is believed to be twice as potent as Nvidia's H20 chip, specifically designed for the Chinese market. Washington has been striving to impede China's advancement by implementing export controls on advanced chips essential for advanced AI applications, restricting access to top-tier US semiconductors like Nvidia's.

China's determination to achieve technological self-sufficiency has spurred Chinese tech firms to embrace domestic chips as viable alternatives to foreign products.