Chinese tech giant Alibaba has unveiled a new family of artificial intelligence models built specifically to power robots, marking a notable expansion beyond the chatbots that have dominated the AI race so far.
The new lineup is called the Qwen-Robot series, according to Caliber.Az, and is designed to act as the "brains" for intelligent machines. As MSN's report describes it, this is Alibaba's first "embodied AI" model family — meaning AI meant to control physical systems in the real world rather than just generate text on a screen. The MSN item notes the models link large language models to robotic hardware, the technology aimed at the "next generation of robots."
The move fits a broader industry trend. U.S. News reported the announcement under the framing of a shift "from chatbots to agents" — AI systems that don't just answer questions but take actions and operate autonomously.
The announcement also drew attention from investors. The Globe and Mail framed the new Qwen models as fueling Alibaba's "robotics ambitions" and weighed what they mean for holders of the company's stock, traded under the ticker BABA.
Why it matters: Embodied AI is widely seen as the next frontier after text-based chatbots, and a major player like Alibaba entering the robotics-brains business signals that the global competition over AI is moving from screens into the physical world.