Bosch, a global supplier of technology and services, and Alibaba Group have announced an expanded strategic partnership to advance digital transformation through cloud computing and AI.

The collaboration will cover cloud-based enterprise operations, AI-driven business applications, and e-commerce growth.

“Our partnership opens up opportunities for both Bosch and Alibaba to expand in the global market,”

said Dr Tanja Rückert, member of the Bosch board of management and Chief Digital Officer.

“By joining forces, we combine Alibaba’s cloud infrastructure, AI capabilities and e-commerce reach with Bosch’s expertise in mobility, industrial technology and consumer goods. Cooperation with strong partners like Alibaba is essential for Bosch to realise the full potential of AI and create greater value.”

Joe Tsai, Chairman of Alibaba Group, said:

“This partnership with Bosch demonstrates our commitment to empowering global businesses with advanced technologies and highlights Alibaba’s strengths in AI and cloud computing. Bosch’s expertise in automotive solutions and household appliances, combined with Alibaba’s innovations in cloud, AI and e-commerce, will enable both companies to deliver value to customers worldwide.”

The agreement will involve cloud migration and AI collaboration across Bosch’s operations, including corporate processes, home appliances and commercial vehicles, with the aim of improving efficiency and developing smarter systems.

Bosch will also explore the use of Alibaba Cloud’s AI infrastructure for its intelligent driving environment.

In the automotive sector, both companies intend to assess the use of Qwen-based multimodal models to improve in-vehicle interactions and consider applications of Qwen’s visual language model to support automated driving.

In e-commerce, Bosch plans to introduce new product categories in China in 2025, using consumer insights from Alibaba’s platforms.

Alibaba will support Bosch in expanding its customer base in China through digital marketing.

Bosch also intends to extend its e-commerce presence to Southeast Asia, Spain and Latin America via Alibaba’s platforms including Lazada, Miravia and AliExpress.

Bosch and Alibaba first began working together in e-commerce in 2017, with Bosch establishing a presence on Alibaba’s Tmall platform.

Since then, the partnership has involved marketing, sales, membership programmes and online-to-offline services.

Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Hong Kong, based on image by peachfreepix via Freepik