Global AI Leader Xu Zhuhong Joins Alibaba’s Tongyi Team to Drive Multimodal Innovation

September 30, Kuaitech News – In a major move within the AI industry, world-renowned AI scientist and IEEE Fellow Xu Zhuhong has officially transitioned to Alibaba’s Tongyi team, where he will spearhead the development of multimodal interaction models.

According to insiders, this is a normal internal transfer within the Alibaba Group. But given Xu’s influence in the global AI community, the shift is already drawing strong attention across the tech world.

A Scholar and Innovator of Global Standing

Xu Zhuhong brings over 20 years of academic and industry experience. He is a tenured professor at Singapore Management University and previously served as a tenured associate professor at Nanyang Technological University.

His academic footprint is extraordinary:

• 300+ top-tier AI papers published
• 50,000+ citations worldwide
• Recognized as part of the world’s top 1% of scientists by Stanford rankings

These achievements underscore his deep theoretical foundation and impact in the field.

A Track Record of Building AI Ecosystems

Beyond academia, Xu has been a pioneering force in applied AI. Notably, he served as Vice President at Salesforce, the world’s largest enterprise software company, where he built Salesforce’s Asia AI research ecosystem from the ground up.

In 2023, Xu co-founded HyperAGI, a multimodal AI startup, marking him as one of the rare AI leaders who has successfully bridged academia, research, and industry.

Earlier this year, Xu joined Alibaba as Vice President of the Group and Chief Scientist of the Intelligent Information Business Unit, focusing on multimodal foundational models and AI agent applications for consumer-facing products.

Vision for Multimodal AI

Xu’s leadership has already been felt on the global stage. At the 2025 Shanghai World Mobile Communications Conference in June, he delivered a keynote titled “The Development and Evolution of Multimodal Large Models.”

He showcased practical applications through Quark App’s AI Super Frame and AI Camera, demonstrating how multimodal AI can seamlessly power real-world user experiences.

What This Means for Alibaba

By bringing Xu Zhuhong into the Tongyi team, Alibaba is doubling down on its multimodal strategy—an area critical for the next wave of AI breakthroughs, from intelligent search to consumer-facing AI agents.

His combined expertise in cutting-edge research, enterprise AI, and startup innovation positions him to accelerate Alibaba’s ambitions in the global AI race.