Global sourcing has long been a barrier for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Language differences, compliance challenges, logistics hurdles, and trust issues can overwhelm even the most determined entrepreneurs. In this episode of the AI in Business podcast, Kuo Zhang, President of Alibaba.com, shares how new technologies—including Alibaba’s agentic AI system Accio—are streamlining procurement and unlocking opportunities once reserved for enterprises. Drawing on examples from thousands of SMBs worldwide, Zhang details how AI is transforming sourcing from a months-long, manual process into an automated workflow that delivers results in hours. He also discusses how Alibaba.com is embedding AI into every layer of its platform, from search to supplier engagement, and how organizations of any size can begin adopting these systems with minimal lift. Want to share your AI adoption story with executive peers? Click emerj.com/expert2 for more information and to be a potential future guest on the ‘AI in Business’ podcast! Join enterprise leaders at Emerj’s Vision to Value AI Infra Summit to explore strategies for building, securing, and scaling AI infrastructure. Reserve your free spot today: emerj.com/infrasummit2.
