Alibaba Group is preparing to fully integrate Qwen — its AI model and chatbot — with Taobao, allowing users to browse, compare, and purchase products through conversational AI interactions instead of traditional keyword searches, according to people familiar with the matter.

The integration would enable users to complete the full shopping process inside Qwen's AI agent ecosystem — from product discovery and price comparisons to placing orders and managing after-sales services — without manually scrolling through product listings, the sources said.

Qwen will gain access to more than 4 billion products across Alibaba's Taobao and Tmall marketplaces, while a dedicated "skills library" will allow AI agents to coordinate logistics, process refunds, track deliveries, and handle customer disputes automatically, the people added.

The move highlights how Chinese technology companies are increasingly embedding AI directly into consumer services in search of new growth engines and user traffic.

Alibaba has been quietly testing AI-assisted commerce for months. During the Chinese New Year, Qwen attracted users with promotions such as 1-cent milk tea powered by AI agents.

By the end of February, nearly 140 million users had tried AI shopping functions through the platform's intelligent agent features.