Connect with us

Published

on

The Alibaba Group logo displayed on a mobile phone. 

Cfoto | Future Publishing | Getty Images

Chinese tech giant Alibaba on Wednesday said that its core Taobao and Tmall e-commerce platforms will now allow payment through Tencent’s WeChat app for the first time.

Previously, Alibaba’s Chinese e-commerce sites only accepted limited payment options and pushed WeChat Pay rival Alipay as one of the main ways to pay. Alipay is run by Ant Group, an affiliate of Alibaba that was also founded by Jack Ma.

“We have always been open to collaborations, and have actively explored interoperability and partnerships with our peers,” an Alibaba spokesperson told CNBC. “We are constantly working to enhance user experience by making shopping more convenient, enjoyable, and efficient.”

Taobao and Tmall will likely begin accepting payments through WeChat Pay this month, a source familiar with the matter who was not authorized to disclose the details publicly, told CNBC.

The historic move comes as Alibaba looks to reignite growth in its China e-commerce business, which has been under pressure from a sluggish Chinese consumer and from competitors like JD.com amd Temu-owner PDD.

Alibaba CEO Eddie Wu has previously said that the Taobao and Tmall business should return to growth toward the latter half of the firm’s fiscal year 2025.

WeChat has more than 1.3 billion users globally, the majority of whom is located in China. WeChat Pay is one of the biggest mobile payments apps in the country.

By allowing users to transact through WeChat Pay on Taobao and Tmall, Alibaba could therefore increase its market share in less developed parts of China, the source said.

The company’s biggest rival JD.com has also allowed WeChat Pay to be used on its platform for a long time.

Another theme in the background is the regulatory scrutiny that Beijing has put on Chinese technology companies, urging these firms to bring down their so-called walled gardens that block competitors’ products.

Alibaba and Tencent are two of China’s largest internet companies that have built dominance through their sprawling services, which often center around their so-called super apps. That prominance created a situation where, for a long time, rivals would not allow access to each others’ services on their respective platforms.

Tech giants started to change these practices over the past few years, amid criticism from regulators. In 2021, Tencent began allowing users to access external links in one-on-one chats. For example, if someone shared a link from Alibaba’s Taobao in WeChat, a user would be able to open that without leaving the messaging app. That same year, some of Alibaba’s other apps began supporting WeChat Pay.

Last week, China’s market regulator said Alibaba had completed a three-year regulatory “rectification” process following a 18.23 billion yuan ($2.6 billion) antitrust fine the company received in 2021.

Continue Reading

Technology

Spotify founder Daniel Ek stepping down as CEO, company names co-CEOs to replace him

Published

on

By

Spotify founder Daniel Ek stepping down as CEO, company names co-CEOs to replace him

Daniel Ek, founder and chief executive officer of Spotify, attends the Cannes Lions 2016 on June 22, 2016 in Cannes, France. 

Antoine Antoniol | Getty Images

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek will step down from his position and move to the role of executive chairman, the company said Tuesday.

Spotify shares dipped around 4% following the announcement.

Ek, who co-founded the streaming platform in 2006, will be replaced by current co-presidents and longtime executives Gustav Söderström and Alex Norström as co-CEOs, the company said in a release. The transition will happen Jan. 1, 2026.

“Over the last few years, I’ve turned over a large part of the day-to-day management and strategic direction of Spotify to Alex and Gustav–who have shaped the company from our earliest days and are now more than ready to guide our next phase,” Ek said in a release. “This change simply matches titles to how we already operate.”

Read more CNBC tech news

Ek, who has been a member of the board since 2008, said his new role will focus on steering the company’s long-term strategy and providing support to its senior team.

“It’s been an honor of a lifetime for me to be able to lead Spotify for close to 20 years,” Ek said in an X post.

Stock Chart IconStock chart icon

hide content

Spotify year-to-date stock chart.

Continue Reading

Technology

Ring founder ‘backs the blue,’ says AI is helping Amazon-owned doorbell unit fight crime

Published

on

By

Ring founder 'backs the blue,' says AI is helping Amazon-owned doorbell unit fight crime

Ring CEO Jamie Siminoff

Courtesy of Ring | Brandon Friend-Solis

In 2023, Jamie Siminoff called up Amazon‘s former devices boss, Dave Limp, to say he was stepping down from leading the video doorbell company he sold to the e-commerce giant for $839 million in 2018.

Siminoff, who started Ring in 2013, said Limp and Amazon offered him the opportunity to work elsewhere at the company, but he declined.

“I said, ‘I think I have to leave,'” Siminoff recalled in an interview on Monday. “I don’t think I can be half in. I’m either all in or I’m all out.”

He wasn’t gone for long.

In April, Siminoff announced his return to Ring, replacing Liz Hamren, a former Microsoft and Discord executive whom Amazon had hired to succeed him. Now that he’s back at the helm, Siminoff says he’s restoring Ring’s original mission, to “make neighborhoods safer.”

And now his team has even more artificial intelligence technology at its disposal to supercharge those efforts.

Siminoff took the stage Tuesday at Amazon’s annual hardware event in New York to debut new Ring cameras, along with a feature called Search Party that uses AI to identify potential matches in camera footage. It’s aimed at “reuniting lost dogs” with their families, but Siminoff said there could be other applications in the future.

Read more CNBC tech news

During Hamren’s two-year tenure, Ring moved to adopt a softer, more whimsical image marked by silly videos of backyard animal encounters and family-friendly hijinks. It also removed a tool widely criticized by civil liberties and privacy advocates that let police request doorbell footage from users in its neighborhood watch app.

Siminoff, 48, said Ring’s cameras have many uses, including keeping an eye on pets and loved ones. Siminoff is based in Los Angeles and has two dogs, a Belgian Malinois and a Chihuahua.

“I’m focused on: How can I get the highest density of camera coverage in a neighborhood matched with AI to make neighborhoods safer?” he said. “It’s not just hard crime.”

Ring is part of Amazon’s vast devices and services division, which is overseen by Panos Panay, a former Microsoft hardware leader who joined the company in 2023. Beyond Ring, the unit spans Amazon’s Zoox robotaxis, Kindle e-readers, Echo devices and Kuiper, the company’s internet satellite service.

Ring’s security cameras typically start at $50 and range in price depending on coverage. Users can also pay up to $20 a month for its subscription service that lets them continuously record and access more cloud storage, among other features.

‘It was terrible’

Siminoff said a personal encounter with violence played a part in his return.

Several months earlier, Siminoff said he witnessed a shooting at a laundromat in South Central Los Angeles that left him feeling shaken.

“It was terrible,” Siminoff said through tears. “Kids are crying, it’s a whole f****** scene.”

Ring CEO Jamie Siminoff unsuccessfully pitched his company on ABC’s “Shark Tank” in 2013 before returning to the show as a guest judge.

Eric McCandless | Contributor | Getty Images

The incident reaffirmed his belief in Ring’s mission and its potential to aid law enforcement officers when they “don’t have time to go door to door,” he said.

Those relationships with police have been controversial over the years.

Amazon claimed a Los Angeles Police Department pilot program in 2015 found that Ring’s doorbells reduced burglaries in neighborhoods “by as much as 55%,” according to a 2018 release. But reports from several outlets have disputed whether Ring cameras lead to a decrease in crime.

Privacy advocates have expressed concern that the company’s cameras and accompanying Neighbors app have heightened the risk of racial profiling and turned residents into informants, with few guardrails around how law enforcement can use the material.

Siminoff, who said he’s “pro public safety” and “backs the blue,” said he felt some of the coverage of Ring’s video-request feature for police was unfair or inaccurate.

“That’s the stuff that irks me,” Siminoff said, referring to the claim that Ring gives camera access to police.

“We allow them to request footage from people in a super privacy centric, anonymous way that keeps their privacy. But that’s not a good headline,” he added.

Devin Hance | CNBC

A few weeks after Siminoff’s return, Ring reintroduced its community request tool through a partnership with Axon Enterprise, the maker of Tasers and police body cameras. Police can solicit footage from Ring cameras through Axon’s online evidence management system, and users can choose whether or not to share it.

“I don’t think we should be working directly with police,” Siminoff said. “It’s not the business we’re in in any way.”

Siminoff said Ring, which is profitable, is exploring other potential growth areas, such as security solutions for small- and medium-sized businesses.

Ring isn’t currently exploring offering up its tech to a more homegrown customer — its sprawling parent company. At least when it comes to sticking its cameras in Amazon delivery vans or warehouses.

Siminoff has considered it, but “then you realize it’s just a distraction,” he said. “Amazon’s so big you could probably do something for everything.”

WATCH: Amazon comments on $2.5 billion settlement with FTC

Amazon comments on $2.5 billion settlement with FTC

Continue Reading

Technology

Firefly Aerospace stock tanks 24% after test rocket explosion

Published

on

By

Firefly Aerospace stock tanks 24% after test rocket explosion

A model of the Firefly Aerospace Blue Ghost lander during the company’s initial public offering at the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York, US, on Thursday, Aug. 7, 2025.

Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Firefly Aerospace shares sank more than 24% after its rocket exploded during a test flight on Monday.

The explosion occurred during a first-stage test flight of satellite-launching Alpha Flight 7 rocket at its facility in Briggs, Texas, Firefly wrote in an update.

“Proper safety protocols were followed, and all personnel are safe,” Firefly wrote. “The company is assessing the impact to its stage test stand, and no other facilities were impacted.”

The eight-year-old space technology company competes in an increasingly crowded space dominated by billionaire-backed ventures such as Elon Musk‘s SpaceX for deals with NASA and prominent government contractors.

Appetite is strong. Over the years, Firefly has partnered with NASA, Lockheed Martin and L3Harris Technologies. It recently won a $177 million contract with NASA and a $50 million investment from Northrop Grumman.

Read more CNBC tech news

At the time of its initial public offering last month, Firefly was the third significant space technology to debut in 2025 after Voyager Technologies and Karman Holdings.

High investor interest led to an upsized offering, with an initial share sale raising $868 million at a $6.3 billion valuation. Shares surged 34% on opening day to close at more than $60. The stock has since pulled back 50%.

“It’s all about execution,” CEO Jason Kim told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on IPO day.

He said the company is laser-focused on its Alpha rockets to meet heightened commercial and national security demands.

Firefly makes rockets, space tugs and lunar landers. Earlier this year, its Blue Ghost lunar lander successfully landed on the moon.

Rocket tests in the sector, historically, haven’t always been a smooth ride. Firefly’s sixth Alpha rocket failed in April. Last month, the Federal Aviation Administration cleared Firefly to continue testing its Alpha rockets. SpaceX has also suffered mishaps, including a launch pad explosion this summer.

“We learn from each test to improve our designs and build a more reliable system,” Firefly wrote in its mission update.

Stock Chart IconStock chart icon

hide content

Firefly 1 month stock chart.

Continue Reading

Trending