On October 31st, Alibaba’s 2018 shareholders’ meeting was held in Hong Kong today. Alibaba’s founder and chairman of the board of directors Ma Yun released the “To all shareholders’ letter” yesterday evening.
Ma Yun mentioned in the letter, “This is the last time I wrote to you as the chairman of Alibaba’s board of directors. But Alibaba has built a unique talent mechanism, cultural system and its own values for 19 years. Zhang Yongzheng is leading. Young people in Alibaba show their outstanding business talent and leadership, and the future of Alibaba will definitely make the world more pleasant.”
As the global economy is experiencing difficulties, trade, consumption, stock market, and manufacturing all begin to become uncertain, and trade frictions have further increased market turmoil. For Alibaba, which has been established for 19 years, this is the third time. Experience such global twists and turns. How to change yourself? How to meet historic challenges?
In this regard, Ma Yun mentioned that Alibaba will always be a 102-year-old company, and we will not change the mission of “making the world a difficult business”. To this end, we will approach it step by step. In the next 20 years, we will serve 2 billion consumers worldwide, help 10 million SMEs to make profits and create 100 million jobs.
Ma Yun also said, “Alibaba’s comprehensive layout and preparation in big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and the Internet of Things is the foundation for the transformation of manufacturing in China and the world. Technology is used in manufacturing, retail, and finance. The industry has created tremendous value. In the past two years, this value has already appeared in the retail industry. In China, we have used technology to enable 200,000 retail stores to achieve online and offline integration, opening up new retail routes.”
Attached to Ma Yun’s shareholder letter:
Dear investors:
Thank you for your trust in Alibaba for four years.
This is the last time I wrote to you as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Alibaba. However, as a partner of Alibaba, shareholders and founders, I am willing to discuss any issues with you at any time in the future.
At this moment, I am full of pride and gratification. For the evolution of the company itself, the inheritance of corporate leadership and organizational culture has always been the biggest challenge for any enterprise. Alibaba has built a unique talent mechanism, cultural system and its own values for 19 years. Because of all this, we have become us today; and because of this, we can have a leadership team that belongs to tomorrow. Zhang Yongzheng led the young people of Alibaba to show their outstanding business talent and leadership. The future of Alibaba will definitely make the world more pleasant.
As for me personally, I will devote more time to education, public welfare, and environmental protection; I will not and cannot let myself idle. However, this time, I have enough time to pick a few things that I am interested in, interesting and meaningful. Of course, I will always belong to Alibaba. I am grateful to Alibaba. At every important moment in the future of Alibaba, I will still accompany it, support it, and applaud it for it.
Alibaba will always be a 102-year company, and we will not change the mission of “making the world a difficult business”. To this end, we will approach it step by step. In the next 20 years, we will serve 2 billion consumers worldwide, help 10 million SMEs to make profits and create 100 million jobs. When Alibaba’s 20th anniversary was established in 2019, it was able to achieve a $1 trillion GMV. This number was established six years ago, and now we are close to this goal.
Recently, the global economy is experiencing difficulties. All the trade, consumption, stock market and manufacturing industries have become uncertain. Trade friction has further increased the market panic. Alibaba has experienced such a global experience for the third time in 19 years. The twists and turns, past experience tells us that these twists and turns, anxiety, and friction are hidden behind huge opportunities. The question is how to change ourselves. There is no historic challenge, and what is the historic opportunity? Alibaba is a company that is good at grasping adversity.
When business is difficult to do, it is time for us to fulfill our mission of “making the world a business that is not difficult to do”.
Today’s industrial era trade patterns and trade rules have encountered huge problems, which is precisely the opportunity for our globalization. In the past three years, we have built a trading system that serves SMEs and consumers around the world. We are achieving global buying, global sales, global payments, global shipping, and global play. Promoting the global inclusiveness of “4T” (Trade, Tourism, Training, Technology), enabling global SMEs, young people and women to participate in global trade on an equal footing. We are extremely excited to use Alibaba’s technology, experience and resources to participate in the establishment of a new global universal inclusive trade system.
9 years ago, Alibaba has transformed into a technology company. Our comprehensive layout and preparation in big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and the Internet of Things is the foundation for the transformation of manufacturing in China and around the world. We use technology to create great value for the manufacturing, retail, and financial industries. In the past two years, this value has already appeared in the retail industry. In China, we use technology to enable 200,000 retail stores to achieve online and offline integration. Opened the new retail road.
The manufacturing industry is also changing. The future manufacturing industry is the perfect combination of manufacturing and service industry. It is the production of individualization, customization and data, and it is the rebirth of the whole industry. Alibaba is not entering the manufacturing industry, but empowering manufacturing, using artificial intelligence, blockchain and Internet of Things technologies to help manufacturing change and helping thousands of manufacturing companies meet the challenges of the future. This is what we do and manufacturing. The common challenges of the industry are also common opportunities.
Alibaba’s rich and prosperous economy ecosystem established in the past 19 years, our nearly 30,000 science and technology engineers, our strong operational management talents and innovative products and services that are constantly emerging every day, I think Alibaba is walking in an unprecedented way. On the road to development, what we need is to believe in the future more firmly and believe in ourselves.
Thanks to the trust and support of shareholders, Alibaba has never been able to lay out opportunities for visibility and always invest only for the future. It is precisely because of this that the temporary storms and twists and turns in front of us are hard to hurt us, because we believe that as long as we are innovative in order to solve problems, as long as we create real value, we must not lack the market or profit.
At this time next year, like you, I am also an Alibaba shareholder. I look forward to that day, with you, with expectation, curiosity and pride, and with everyone, insist on believing!
Ma Yun
Chairman of the Board of Directors of Alibaba Group