Unveiling Alibaba's Quark "Project C": A Long-Term Strategic Initiative, with the First Product to Collaborate with AI Glasses

Text | Chen Xi

On October 20th, there were reports that Alibaba's Quark is advancing an AI strategic project codenamed "Project C" internally. This project has been secretly incubated within the company for several months, and its first phase result is about to be launched.

We further learned from multiple sources that this project is led by Quark's core team, with many senior members of Alibaba's Tongyi Lab deeply involved. An insider said that this could be an important exploration by Alibaba in the To C conversational AI field.

What is "Project C"?

There are various speculations in the industry about the name "Project C". One view is that "C" stands for "Chat", meaning that Quark may launch a new conversational form. Another view is that "C" refers to the "C" area of Alibaba's Xixi Park where Quark's Hangzhou office is located. There is also a speculation that the code "C" is taken from the classic game "Pac - Man", aiming directly at Doubao.

A person close to the project revealed that "Project C" is not the code for a specific product or application, but a long - term strategic plan within Quark, with the goal of "continuously exploring new technologies and application forms in the AI era". "Project C will incubate multiple AI application directions, but only the best one will be launched." the person said.

It is reported that the project has strict standards for implementation. Many projects are eliminated at the project initiation stage, and those that enter the development stage also have to go through repeated verification and reconstruction.

Meanwhile, the "Project C" system also includes the incubation direction of overseas AI applications. Many industry observers commented that this may be a more open - minded approach to test the diverse scenarios and market feedback of AI products, rather than being limited to domestic applications. The advantage of this is that it reserves more possibilities for subsequent ecological collaboration.

The first launched application of "Project C" is about to be released. Although the project was initiated internally long ago and has gone through multiple rounds of polishing and adjustment, the team believes that now is the "most suitable time for launch" - "The model capabilities, industry environment, and user habits have finally reached an ideal intersection point." a person close to the project said.

In terms of importance, "Project C" is to Quark what the "Street - sweeping List" is to Gaode and "Flash Purchase" is to Taobao.

From the scale of investment to the intensity of organizational mobilization, it is clear that "Project C" holds a strategic position within Quark. "This is a product that requires long - term investment and depends on breakthroughs in model technology." a person close to the project said. For this reason, Alibaba has invested more resources in this project, and many senior members of Tongyi Lab are deeply involved. Almost all the core members of Quark's search business are involved, and technical teams from places like Guangzhou and Beijing have also gathered in Hangzhou for closed - door R & D. A Guangzhou technician revealed that he has been stationed in Hangzhou for more than three months.

Based on comprehensive information from multiple sources, with continuous investment in multiple dimensions such as technology R & D, resource allocation, and organizational collaboration, "Project C" is entering the stage of result transformation and has made substantial breakthroughs in model capabilities and product forms.

Quark Further Becomes the Front - end Interface for Multiple AI Capabilities

Many insiders revealed that the implementation scope of "Project C" is not limited to the App level. In the future, this project will also form a business linkage with Quark's AI glasses. The relevant applications are expected to provide core AI capabilities for Quark's AI glasses and become an important part of connecting with Alibaba's ecosystem.

Currently, Quark's AI glasses have received high acclaim. From the media reviews and feedback from internal testers, Quark's AI glasses have made breakthrough designs in terms of wearing comfort, battery life, and imaging performance. Some industry experts believe that this product not only promotes the in - depth integration of Alibaba in the hardware, software, and ecosystem levels but may also become a key node for extending Quark's AI capabilities from the App to daily wearable terminals. Therefore, some users who participated in the internal test gave it the evaluation of "the most anticipated AI hardware globally in the second half of the year".

It can be seen that as Alibaba's AI ecosystem gradually improves, Quark is becoming the front - end interface for multiple AI capabilities of Alibaba.

Since this year, Quark has been very active: In March, it was comprehensively upgraded to the "AI Super Box" and was clearly designated by Alibaba as the flagship AI application. In June, it launched functions such as "In - depth College Entrance Examination Search" and "Intelligent College Application Report". In July, its health large - model became the first "Chief - level AI Doctor" in the consumer - grade product system, and Quark's AI glasses were unveiled the same month.

Data shows that in the "Global Top 100 Consumer - grade Generative AI Application List" released by the well - known global venture capital firm A16z, Quark ranks ninth. According to data from the QbitAI think tank, Doubao, Quark, and DeepSeek lead the domestic market on both mobile and PC ends. On the Chinese AI application ranking list released by AIGCRank, Quark has topped the list for several consecutive months.

In the past year, the focus of innovation in the Chinese AI industry has been shifting from model bases to competition among product complexes. Industry observers pointed out that the emergence of "Project C" may mean that Quark will further become the integration hub for Alibaba's AI C - end business: connecting the model on one end, the terminal hardware and software on another end, and Alibaba's diverse application ecosystem on the third end.

Although Quark has not responded to "Project C", judging from the resource allocation and project progress, it will undoubtedly cause a huge ripple in the long - quiet AI application market.