In recent times, Jack Ma, the founder of Alibaba who has rarely appeared in public since his retirement, has been making frequent public appearances, especially after being spotted returning to the Alibaba campus in Hangzhou, sparking heightened attention from the public. This move coincided with a lengthy exposé by a former Alibaba employee pointing out the “big company syndrome” within the company, and Jack Ma’s response to it, along with his recent actions in support of Alibaba, are interpreted by observers as his deep concern for the group’s development, aiming to stabilize morale and instill confidence during a crucial transformation period.
Recently, a netizen captured Jack Ma’s presence at the Alibaba campus in Hangzhou. From the circulated photos online, Jack Ma was seen wearing a white visor cap, a red T-shirt, and white pants, being escorted onto a shuttle bus by accompanying staff, warmly greeting employees with a smile, appearing to be in high spirits.
Jack Ma’s sudden reappearance in the public eye, particularly at the Alibaba campus, has sparked discussions among netizens. While some speculate that Jack Ma might have just come back to visit, others wonder if there are significant moves planned with Alibaba in the near future.
A few days ago, an internal letter written by a departing Alibaba employee to the company was leaked online. The employee, using the alias Yuan’an, who was a product research lead at DingTalk, published a lengthy letter on the internal Alibaba network upon resigning, reflecting on the past years at Alibaba and directly addressing the company’s “big company syndrome.”
In the letter, it was mentioned: “Looking back on the fifteen years, objectively speaking, it is not just the external evaluation changing, but we ourselves have truly changed. We have lost the dream of bringing positive change to society, now we focus on KPIs, salaries, stocks, and houses. We treat customers and users as data and traffic, discussing how to operate on data and harvest customers, our competition is consumed internally.”
“To be honest, witnessing the gradual decline of Alibaba’s core values, I am worried about how long we can uphold our mission, whether our vision can still be achieved.”
The departing employee then analyzed Alibaba’s recent development trends, noting the overall cooling of the internet industry, the failure of most external acquisitions by Alibaba, and a lack of successful internal innovations. Within Alibaba, there are numerous long-standing issues such as HR incapacity and lack of integrity, unclear rewards and punishments, a prevalence of short-termism, and inaction among middle and senior management.
Finally, the employee offered seven suggestions to Alibaba, sending sincere wishes to the company. Soon, the article went viral across the internet, drawing significant attention.
In response to this, Jack Ma, as the founder of the group, addressed the letter stating: “Hello Yuan’an, thank you for your lengthy letter, it was well-written. It seems like just as people grow, Alibaba also has many inevitable paths and processes to take for development, Alibaba is changing. I wish you all the best and hope you come back often.”
Combining Jack Ma’s recent statements with his subsequent appearances at the Alibaba campus, the external perception is that Jack Ma remains deeply invested in Alibaba’s development.
Even though Jack Ma has been retired for several years now, his movements continue to be a focal point of public interest.
Earlier, there was a sudden market rumor circulating, stating, “Jack Ma returned to Alibaba on May 10,” and “Alibaba plans to cancel the 1+6+N model set for 2023, returning to a big group model.” This brought immediate attention to Jack Ma from the public sphere.
Allegedly, Jack Ma responded to the return to Alibaba news, saying, “I haven’t heard of it.”
Throughout this year, Jack Ma has been making frequent appearances, attending various Alibaba events, endorsing Alibaba, and delivering speeches.
In April, Jack Ma returned to the Alibaba Hangzhou Yunqi campus, donning a new staff badge inscribed with “Feng Qingyang” (Jack Ma’s pen name), participating in the Alibaba Cloud’s new fiscal year launch event.
During “Alibaba Day” in May, Jack Ma once again made a return to Alibaba for an event, drawing significant attention. Prior to Alibaba Day, the company held a “2025 Alibaba Ten-Year Fragrant Music Concert,” where Jack Ma appeared in casual attire, engaging in the concert festivities.
On Alibaba Day, Jack Ma took part in activities such as the “Alibaba Mascot Grand Parade” held inside the Alibaba campus.
Furthermore, accompanied by Alibaba Group’s current CEO, Daniel Zhang, Jack Ma visited the “Lakeside Cottage,” symbolizing Alibaba’s entrepreneurial spirit.
This cottage is where Jack Ma and his founding team started their entrepreneurship journey back in 1999 upon returning to Hangzhou. At that time, over a dozen people crowded into rudimentary unfinished rooms, initiating the challenging entrepreneurship process under scarce material conditions. Alibaba was born from this lakeside cottage.
In recent years, the market environment has been undergoing significant changes, prompting Alibaba to make various adjustments. On one hand, with intensified competition in the e-commerce industry and the gradual shift from incremental to existing markets, facing formidable rivals like JD.com, Pinduoduo, Douyin e-commerce, Xiaohongshu e-commerce, Alibaba continues to release beneficial measures for merchants and consumers to retain its user base and maintain its leading position.
Currently, Alibaba is facing a series of market opportunities and challenges, undergoing a profound transformation at the group’s strategic level. At this juncture, Jack Ma’s frequent appearances in support of Alibaba are seen as efforts to stabilize morale, inject confidence into the company and team, and convey faith in Alibaba’s future.