Billionaire Jack Ma (Photo by Chesnot/Getty Images)
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Jack Ma has finally returned to mainland China after spending more than a year traveling abroad, just as authorities have begun to show signs of easing their crackdown on the internet sector and issued supportive messages to private entrepreneurs.
The 58-year-old, who is currently ranked China’s seventh-richest person with a net worth of $24 billion, visited a private school in the city of Hangzhou in Zhejiang province on Monday, according to the South China Morning Post, a newspaper based in Hong Kong which is owned by Alibaba. The tech mogul was said to have discussed topics such as education and ChatGPT-related technologies at the Yungu School, according to an article the school published on its WeChat account.
Yungu, which was established in 2017 by Alibaba’s founders, says Ma had called on teachers and students to use artificial intelligence to solve real problems, as the conversational chatbot heralds a new age. The Hong Kong-listed shares of Alibaba jumped more than 4% after the news of Ma’s visit emerged, as investors clearly view the return of one of China’s best-known billionaires as a positive development.
Ma, who has largely stayed out of the limelight since the abrupt halt to Ant Group’s $35 billion initial public offering in late 2020, had been spotted at a variety of locations spanning the globe. The trip to Hangzhou came after his stay in Hong Kong in January, when the billionaire was reported to be meeting with friends and finance executives in the Asian financial hub. It isn’t immediately known how long Ma intends to stay in Hangzhou, and representatives at Alibaba as well as the Jack Ma Foundation did not immediately respond to messages and emailed requests seeking comment. A unit of China’s state-affiliated Cailian publication also reported that Ma is back in Hangzhou on Monday.
A screenshot of a Yungu video picturing billionaire Jack Ma’s visit to the private school. The Chinese-language caption reads: Teacher Ma has come to vist Yungu.
Screenshot by Yue Wang
The billionaire, in the meantime, is relinquishing control of Ant Group, after stepping down from the helm of Alibaba in 2019. As Chinese authorities came down hard on the tech sector and wiped out hundreds of billions of dollars in market value from their stocks, Ma had been overseas spending time in countries including Australia, Japan, the Netherlands and Thailand.
But in a bid to shore up the economy’s weakening outlook and boost investor confidence, China’s top leaders have changed tack and now say authorities will be more supportive. During his first press conference as the country’s premier, former Shanghai Communist Party boss Li Qiang said private entrepreneurs would “enjoy a better environment and further space for development,” while calling on government officials at all levels to “care for and support private enterprises.”