Alibaba just made developing AI agents way cheaper
What's the story
Alibaba Cloud has launched its latest artificial intelligence (AI) model, "Qwen2.5-Omni-7B," in its Qwen series.
The launch comes as China's interest in AI technologies continues to grow, especially after DeepSeek's breakthrough R1 model emerged.
The new multimodal model can handle text, images, audio and videos while generating real-time text and natural speech responses.
According to Alibaba's website announcement, Qwen2.5-Omni-7B can be deployed on edge devices like mobile phones without sacrificing performance or efficiency.
Model features
Alibaba's new AI model: A boon for intelligent voice applications
Alibaba asserts that the unique combination of features in its new model makes it an ideal foundation for developing agile and cost-effective AI agents.
These agents can deliver significant value, especially in intelligent voice applications.
For example, the Qwen2.5-Omni-7B could help visually impaired people by providing real-time audio descriptions to navigate their surroundings.
Following DeepSeek's R1 model launch trend, the company has also made the new model open-source on Hugging Face and GitHub.
Strategic investment
Alibaba's commitment to AI and cloud computing
Over the last few years, Alibaba Cloud has open-sourced more than 200 generative AI models.
The move is part of a larger trend in China, where tech giants such as Baidu are releasing new multimodal foundational models at an unprecedented pace.
Alibaba continues to double down on its AI strategy, planning to invest $53 billion in cloud computing and artificial intelligence infrastructure over the next three years.
The investment exceeds what it spent on the areas in the last decade.
Partnerships
Strategic partnerships bolster Alibaba's AI ambitions
As part of its AI strategy, Alibaba has also locked a major deal with Apple to bring AI into iPhones sold in China.
The company also announced an expanded strategic partnership with BMW to speed up the integration of its AI into the carmaker's next-generation intelligent vehicles.
These partnerships will further strengthen Alibaba's position in the fast-evolving world of artificial intelligence.