The Star Daily reported on January 6 (reporter Chen Mei) that Yuanjing Life (Shanghai) Technology Co., Ltd. (referred to as Yuanjing Life) has undergone a business change, with registered capital increasing from 10 million yuan to approximately 0.118 billion yuan, a growth of 1075%. The investor is Hangzhou Alibaba Venture Capital Co., Ltd.

The Star Daily reporter noted that this is a company established by Alibaba in August 2023 and serves as the business entity for Alibaba's Metaverse service brand 'Yuanjing.' According to information on their official website, Yuanjing 'focuses on the real-time high-performance computing capabilities needed for all scenarios in the Metaverse, deeply integrating innovative technologies such as 3D, AI, and real-time cloud rendering, providing integrated full-stack services for Metaverse infrastructure, technical tools, innovative applications, and business operations.'

However, in November 2024, there were reports of layoffs at Yuanjing, affecting teams in both Hangzhou and Shanghai. In response to the layoff news, Yuanjing stated at the time that 'since Yuanjing has completed the construction of the Metaverse infrastructure layer, the focus of the business has shifted to Metaverse applications, leading to organizational adjustments in accordance with these goals.'**

It is worth mentioning that at the Shanghai Yuanqi Metaverse Industry Promotion Conference held in October 2024, Yuanjing Life participated in the unveiling of the Shanghai Yuanqi Metaverse Industry Promotion Center (preparatory).

Therefore, the business change at Yuanjing Life can be viewed as a landing adjustment for Alibaba's Metaverse-related businesses, and in the future, Yuanjing may further promote the development and marketization of Metaverse-related technologies and services.

Regarding Metaverse applications, an investor told the Star Daily reporter that Alibaba, originating from E-Commerce, inherently has the genes for Metaverse applications.

On one hand, in the E-Commerce field, Alibaba can create virtual shopping scenarios around platforms like Taobao and Tmall. For example, with VR shopping features, users can browse and purchase commodities in a virtual environment; on the other hand, in virtual human marketing, Alibaba has also hired the hyper-realistic digital human AYAYI as the digital host for Tmall Super Brands Day and plans to unlock more identities for it, such as a digital curator, to enrich Metaverse marketing strategies.

At the same time, in the fields of cloud gaming and Entertainment, Yuanjing was dedicated to the development of E-Commerce business, providing solutions for the experience of PC games on Android, promoting the integration of games and the Metaverse.

In terms of investment, Alibaba started its layout in the Metaverse field as early as 2016, participating in the Series C and D financing of AR unicorn Magic Leap.

As one of the important investment platforms under Alibaba, this increase in capital for Yuanjing Shengsheng's Hangzhou Alibaba Venture Capital Co., Ltd. is an extension of Alibaba Group's strategic investment, mainly focusing on investing in early-stage technology and model innovation companies with disruptive innovation potential.

So far, Alibaba has been actively engaged in external investments. However, according to data from the financial news organization, this increase in capital for Yuanjing Shengsheng's parent company, Hangzhou Alibaba Venture Capital Co., Ltd., shows no public investment records for 2024. Prior to this, its invested projects included Cambrian, Danbird, and Qianxun Location, focusing on the three major fields of information services, Software, and E-Commerce.