Zhejiang provincial party secretary’s visit to Alibaba a sign of support for Big Tech after two years of regulatory pressure

Yi is the first senior Chinese government official to visit Alibaba since it was placed under an antitrust investigation two years ago. The Central Economic Work Conference signalled that Beijing will look to internet platforms such as Alibaba to help revive the economy. — SCMP

The new provincial communist party secretary of Zhejiang, home province of Alibaba Group Holding, visited the ecommerce giant’s campus on Dec 18, in a show of support for the Chinese technology company after Beijing signalled a policy shift on Friday.

Yi Lianhong, who was named the top communist party official in Zhejiang this month, urged the company to “strive to be a model student of normative development [and] a leader of innovative development”, according to the official Zhejiang Daily.