Idea in Brief
A New Business Model
Alibaba is an example of tomorrow’s “smart business”: a tech-enabled platform that coordinates multiple business players in an ecosystem.
How It Works
Players in the ecosystem share data and apply machine-learning technology to identify and better fulfill consumer needs.
How to Build It
Automate decision making by:
• making sure every interaction yields as much data as possible
• ensuring that all business activities are mediated by software
• using APIs and other interface protocols to ensure smooth interaction among software systems
• applying machine learning to make sense of data in real time
Alibaba hit the headlines with the world’s biggest IPO in September 2014. Today, the company has a market cap among the global top 10, has surpassed Walmart in global sales, and has expanded into all the major markets in the world. Founder Jack Ma has become a household name.