China’s artificial intelligence race has accelerated, with tech giant Alibaba unveiling a major upgrade to its flagship Qwen AI model. The new Qwen 3.5 version can process text, images and video inputs and analyse videos up to two hours long. The launch comes as DeepSeek prepares its next major platform and rivals such as Baidu, ByteDance, Zhipu and MiniMax rapidly roll out their own model upgrades.
According to Alibaba, the new model supports AI agent–based tasks, enabling it to execute complex multi-step workflows autonomously. Its multimodal capabilities allow it to interpret long-form video, documents and visual data, expanding potential use cases across content analytics, e-commerce, customer support and security monitoring.
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The timing is significant. In China, the Lunar New Year period is traditionally seen as a key window for launching internet and AI products to maximise user adoption. Companies often adopt aggressive rollout strategies during this phase to attract developers and enterprise customers, and Qwen 3.5 is widely viewed as part of that competitive push.
Alibaba introduced the Qwen3 series last year, and the 3.5 upgrade is aimed at strengthening its technological edge. The company’s leadership has committed more than $53 billion to AI infrastructure and cloud capabilities, with further spending likely. The investment targets data centres, computing power and AI-as-a-service offerings to support large-scale enterprise deployment.
DeepSeek’s R1 model disrupted the global AI landscape in 2025, prompting Chinese tech firms to accelerate research, model training and product development. Analysts see the Qwen upgrade as a strategic move to secure market share ahead of DeepSeek’s anticipated launch and to reinforce Alibaba’s position in enterprise AI.
Experts say multimodal and agent-driven AI systems could reshape enterprise software by enabling automated workflows, video intelligence, smart document processing and personalised e-commerce. Alibaba’s cloud business stands to benefit directly, as companies increasingly adopt AI tools through cloud platforms rather than on-premise deployments.
Competition, however, extends beyond model performance. Alibaba, Tencent and Baidu are offering substantial incentives, credits and open toolkits to attract developers and startups, intensifying platform-level rivalry. The objective is not only to build superior models but also to secure the largest developer ecosystem and user base.
Analysts caution that the AI investment race also brings challenges, including rising costs, data governance concerns, heavy computing requirements and evolving regulatory frameworks. Training and running large models demands significant energy and infrastructure, which could affect long-term profitability.
Overall, the launch of Qwen 3.5 marks a key milestone in China’s AI contest. In the coming months, competition with DeepSeek’s upcoming platform and other model upgrades will determine which ecosystem gains traction among enterprises and developers — and how strongly China positions itself in the global AI market.
About the author – Ayesha Aayat is a law student and contributor covering cybercrime, online frauds, and digital safety concerns. Her writing aims to raise awareness about evolving cyber threats and legal responses.
