Alibaba’s new CEO Wu promotes AI to top priority

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE:) is placing a strong emphasis on artificial intelligence (AI) and user experience under the leadership of new Chief Executive Officer Eddie Wu.

According to Bloomberg, Wu outlined the company’s priorities in a memo to staff. Among other things, he emphasized the need for Alibaba to adopt an AI-first approach.

In recent years, Alibaba has faced increased competition from new entrants in social media like ByteDance Ltd., while established players like Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ:) have made significant investments in AI.

“We will recalibrate our operations around these two core strategies and reshape our business priorities,” Wu said in his note, according to Bloomberg.

Alibaba has been slowly recovering from a two-year-long tech crackdown imposed by the Chinese government. However, the unexpected departure of the former CEO Daniel Zhang has added more uncertainties to the company’s future.

Zhang’s departure is seen as a sign of the growing influence of the new leadership team, led by CEO Eddie Wu and Group Chairman Joe Tsai.

Alibaba shares fell 1.5% on Monday.