The founder of Alibaba is entering a new business. He changed the industry
According to media reports, Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma has just launched a new company called “Hangzhou Ma’s Kitchen Food”. It sells packaged food and processes and retails agricultural products
For years, Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma has been a standard-bearer in China’s tech industry – but it looks like he’s moving into the food industry. According to media reports, Ma founded a company called “Hangzhou Ma’s Kitchen Food” in the city where Alibaba is headquartered on Wednesday. Hangzhou is also Ma’s hometown.
New company
The company’s registered capital is 10 million Chinese yuan, or $1.4 million, Alibaba-owned South China Morning Post reported, citing the official corporate register of the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System.
Hangzhou Ma’s Kitchen Food is wholly owned by Ma’s investment company, Hangzhou Dajingtou. No. 22 Art and Culture. The company sells packaged food and processes and retails agricultural products according to SCMP.
Repression against the billionaire
Ma’s interest in agriculture appears to have increased following a government crackdown on his businesses that began in 2020 after he angered Beijing with a critical speech about China’s financial and regulatory system.
The tech titan – known for his outspoken and flamboyant personality – disappeared from public view for two years following the crackdown. His personal wealth also declined, and his businesses lost hundreds of billions of dollars. Since then, he has kept a low profile and rarely appears in public.
In October 2021, Ma was in Spain learning about agriculture and technology related to environmental issues. He also traveled to the Netherlands, Japan and Thailand to study agrotech.