Core Viewpoint - Alibaba Group's stock performance surged by 4.2% during trading on October 21, closing with a 1.98% increase, driven by news of its significant investment in artificial intelligence [1][3]. Group 1: AI Business Development - Alibaba is reportedly developing an AI initiative known as "Plan C," which aims to compete with ByteDance's similar products [3]. - The project is led by the Quark core team and involves senior members from the Tongyi Laboratory, indicating a high level of internal importance [3][4]. - "Plan C" focuses on conversational AI applications, with initial results expected to be revealed soon, although it requires long-term investment and technological breakthroughs [4]. Group 2: Competitive Landscape - ByteDance has made substantial investments in AI, with its product "Doubao" achieving significant user growth, surpassing competitors like DeepSeek [5]. - Doubao's daily token usage increased from 120 billion in May 2022 to 30 trillion by September 2023, marking a 253-fold growth [5]. - As of August 2025, Doubao is projected to have 157 million monthly active users, leading the native AI app market in China [5]. Group 3: Strategic Implications - The launch of "Plan C" may be a strategic move to capture the next generation of information access, integrating advanced conversational AI into platforms like Quark [4][7]. - Quark has gained recognition among users under 25, which could enhance its role as a new super entry point for information, content consumption, and intelligent interaction [4][7]. - The initiative could also serve as a defensive strategy against ByteDance's growing influence in the AI sector, potentially creating pressure on Alibaba's core business boundaries [6][7].

Core Insights - Alibaba's Quark is secretly advancing an AI initiative codenamed "C Plan," led by its core team and involving senior members from Tongyi Lab, focusing on conversational AI applications with expected results soon [1][3] Group 1: C Plan Overview - The "C Plan" has been in development for a considerable time within Quark and requires long-term investment and breakthroughs in model technology [3] - There are two interpretations of the codename "C": one suggests it stands for "Chat," indicating a new conversational format, while the other relates to the classic game "Pac-Man," suggesting competition with ByteDance's AI product "Doubao" [3] Group 2: Quark's Position in AI Market - Quark is a key component of Alibaba's "AI to C" strategy, continuously upgrading its AI capabilities, with plans for a comprehensive upgrade to an "unbounded AI super framework" by March 2025, leveraging the Tongyi large model for multimodal reasoning [5] - Quark has over 150 million monthly active users and ranks ninth in the global AI top 100 list by A16z, while Doubao ranks twelfth, indicating strong performance in the competitive AI application landscape [5] - The competition in the AI to C market is expected to intensify with the rise of new players like DeepSeek [5]

Core Insights - The "C Plan" is an AI initiative led by the Quark core team, with significant involvement from senior experts at Tongyi Lab, indicating a collaborative effort in AI development [2][3] - The project has generated considerable industry buzz, with speculation that "C" may stand for "Chat," suggesting a new conversational AI product that could differentiate Quark from competitors like ChatGPT and Doubao [2][3] - Another interpretation of "C" relates to the classic game "Pac-Man," hinting at competitive dynamics with Doubao, potentially marking a direct confrontation between leading AI firms in China [2][3] Project Development - The "C Plan" has been under closed development for several months, with strict confidentiality measures in place, highlighting the project's significance and the need for long-term investment in model technology breakthroughs [3] - Reports indicate that the project is closely tied to advancements in large model technology, with high-level experts from Tongyi Lab contributing to its development [3] Market Context - Data shows that the top five AI products in China hold over half of the market share, with Doubao, Quark, and DeepSeek being dominant players, indicating a monopolistic landscape among leading AI products [3] - As AI applications become more integrated into daily life, competition among leading firms is intensifying, reminiscent of past rivalries in the internet and mobile internet eras [3]

Core Insights - Alibaba's Quark is advancing an AI strategic project known as "C Plan," which has been incubating internally for several months, with the first phase of results expected to be launched soon [3] - The "C Plan" is not a specific product but a long-term strategic initiative aimed at exploring new technologies and applications in the AI era [6] - The project is seen as crucial for Quark, similar to how "Street Ranking" is vital for Gaode and "Flash Purchase" for Taobao, indicating its strategic importance within the organization [7] Project Details - The "C Plan" is led by Quark's core team and involves senior members from Alibaba's Tongyi Lab, focusing on conversational AI for consumer applications [3][6] - The project has strict criteria for project initiation and development, with many ideas being eliminated early in the process [6] - The first application from the "C Plan" is set to launch, with the timing deemed optimal due to advancements in model capabilities, industry environment, and user habits [6] Resource Allocation - Significant resources have been allocated to the "C Plan," with core members of Quark's search business fully engaged and technical teams from various locations consolidated in Hangzhou for closed development [7] - The project is entering a phase of results transformation, achieving substantial breakthroughs in model capabilities and product forms [7] Future Applications - The "C Plan" will extend beyond app-level applications, potentially integrating with Quark's AI glasses to provide essential AI capabilities, thereby enhancing Alibaba's ecosystem [8] - Quark AI glasses have received positive feedback for comfort, battery life, and imaging performance, positioning them as a key product in extending Quark's AI capabilities to wearable technology [11] Market Position - Quark has been recognized as a leading consumer-grade generative AI application, ranking ninth in a global list by A16z and consistently topping domestic AI application rankings [11] - The emergence of the "C Plan" signifies Quark's role as a central hub for Alibaba's AI consumer business, connecting models, software, hardware, and diverse applications within the Alibaba ecosystem [12]

公开资料显示，夸克连续数月多次登顶 AIGCRank 发布的中国 AI 应用排行榜榜首。在全球知名风 险投资公司 A16z 发布的全球 Top100 消费级生成式 AI 应用榜单上，夸克与豆包均跻身全球前二 十名，其中夸克位列第九，豆包位列第十二。 据内部人士透露，" C 计划 " 已在夸克内部秘密推进数月，分散在北京、广州的部分核心员工已经 集中在杭州园区封闭办公。接近该项目的消息人士称， " 这是一个需要长期投入，且依赖模型技术 突破的产品 " ，因此与通义实验室的协同成为关键，而此次发布可能只是阶段性成果。 关于代号 "C" 的含义，业界流传多种说法：一说代表 "Chat" ，暗示全新的对话交互形态；另一说 取自经典街机游戏 " 吃豆人（ Pac-Man ） " ，暗指对标字节跳动旗下豆包，还有一种可能性是代 指阿里巴巴西溪园区 C 区。目前，夸克官方未对相关信息做出回应。 10 月 20 日消息，据多家媒体报道，阿里 AI 旗舰应用夸克团队内部长期孵化的 "C 计划 "AI 新业 务即将亮相，预计将于近期落地首个阶段性成果。 据悉， "C 计划 " 由夸克 AI 相关核心团队牵头，同时有多位通义实验室 ...

Core Insights - Alibaba's Quark is advancing an AI initiative known as the "C Plan," which is expected to yield its first results soon [1] - The project is led by Quark's core team, with involvement from senior members of Tongyi Lab, indicating a focus on conversational AI applications [1] - The "C" in "C Plan" is speculated to represent "Chat," suggesting a potential new conversational format from Quark [1] - There are also theories that the "C" may be inspired by the classic game "Pac-Man" [1]

Core Viewpoint - Alibaba Quark is advancing an AI initiative known as the "C Plan," focusing on conversational AI applications, with a significant internal team and contributions from senior members of Tongyi Lab [1] Group 1: Project Details - The "C Plan" has been in secret development within Quark for a considerable time, with the first results expected to be revealed soon [1] - The project is described as requiring long-term investment and dependent on breakthroughs in model technology [1] Group 2: Speculations on the Project Name - There are various speculations regarding the origin of the "C" in "C Plan," with one theory suggesting it stands for "Chat," indicating a new conversational format [1] - Another more provocative speculation links "C" to the classic game "Pac-Man," implying a direct competitive goal [1] Group 3: Company Response - As of now, Quark has not responded to inquiries regarding the details of the "C Plan" [1]

Core Insights - Alibaba Quark is advancing an AI initiative known as the "C Plan," led by its core team with involvement from senior members of Tongyi Lab [1] - The "C Plan" is related to conversational AI applications, with the first new results expected to be unveiled soon [1] - The project has been in secret development for a considerable time and is described as requiring long-term investment and breakthroughs in model technology [1] Summary by Categories - **Project Details** - The "C Plan" is a significant AI business initiative within Alibaba Quark, focusing on conversational AI [1] - The project is anticipated to yield its first results shortly, indicating progress in its development [1] - **Team Involvement** - The initiative is spearheaded by the core team of Quark, with contributions from high-level members of Tongyi Lab [1] - **Speculations on Naming** - There are various theories regarding the name "C Plan," with one suggesting "C" stands for "Chat," indicating a new conversational format [1] - Another speculation links "C" to the classic game "Pac-Man," suggesting a competitive edge in the market [1]