What happened
The South China Morning Post reports that Chinese AI companies are using Alibaba’s Tmall marketplace to sell subscriptions, tokens and specialised packages. Z.ai opened an official storefront for its GLM Coding Plan, and Tmall subsequently launched an AI Space Station featuring products from Alibaba Cloud, Z.ai, MiniMax and DeepSeek. Moonshot AI and MiniMax were reportedly discussing official flagship stores, although that part of the report relies on unnamed sources. The SCMP says Kimi, MiniMax and DeepSeek packages are currently sold through third-party vendors.
The South China Morning Post reports that Alibaba’s Tmall is becoming a retail channel for AI services, placing model subscriptions alongside ordinary consumer goods. The development gives Chinese users a familiar way to purchase AI access rather than signing up only through a model developer’s own website.
According to the SCMP, Beijing-based Z.ai, also known as Zhipu AI, opened an online storefront last week for its GLM Coding Plan. Tmall then launched an “AI Space Station” where users can buy AI subscriptions, top up tokens and purchase specialised packages from Alibaba Cloud, Z.ai, MiniMax and DeepSeek.
The SCMP reports that transactions involving AI tokens and subscription products across Taobao and Tmall rose by more than 160 per cent within 48 hours of Z.ai opening its store. That figure was provided by a Tmall spokesperson and is not independently confirmed in the source.
Alibaba Cloud and Z.ai operate their own storefronts, while packages for Kimi, MiniMax and DeepSeek are currently sold through third-party vendors. The SCMP also reports, citing people familiar with the matter, that Moonshot AI and MiniMax were in talks to open official flagship stores. Those discussions and their status are not independently confirmed.
Why it matters
Selling AI access through a mainstream e-commerce platform could make model subscriptions easier for Chinese consumers to discover and buy, while giving AI companies another route to recurring revenue. It also shifts distribution power toward Alibaba, which controls the marketplace traffic and customer relationship. The reported 160 per cent increase in transactions involving AI tokens and subscription products across Taobao and Tmall suggests early interest, but the figure comes from a Tmall spokesperson and has not been independently confirmed.
The move turns AI services into consumer-retail products, using a purchasing model familiar from prepaid mobile plans. That may reduce friction for users who want coding tools, model access or token packages but are less likely to navigate separate developer platforms.
For AI companies, Tmall could provide access to Alibaba’s large consumer audience and a new path toward recurring revenue. The trade-off, as analyst Poe Zhao told the SCMP, is greater dependence on traffic controlled by the platform.
The reported transaction increase indicates early commercial interest, but it does not establish sustained demand, user retention, revenue scale or the quality and usefulness of the services being sold. No independent performance or customer data is provided.
What to watch next
Watch whether Moonshot and MiniMax open verified official stores, whether DeepSeek and other labs move away from third-party sellers, and whether Tmall’s marketplace expands beyond subscriptions and token top-ups. Consumers should check seller identity, plan terms, supported products and refund policies before purchasing. The source does not disclose subscription prices, token denominations, geographic or account restrictions, or whether purchases provide access through official applications and APIs.
The most important next step is whether Moonshot’s Kimi and MiniMax establish official stores, replacing or supplementing third-party distribution. Official listings could clarify pricing, support, authenticity and the precise relationship between the retail plans and each company’s own products.
The source does not provide prices, plan limits, token quantities, renewal terms, availability outside China, eligibility requirements or technical access conditions. Those details will determine whether Tmall is a meaningful distribution channel or mainly a new storefront for existing services.
Consumers should verify sellers and read the terms of access before paying, particularly when products are offered by third parties. It is not clear from the report whether every package is redeemable in an official app, coding environment or API.