Alibaba’s AI cloud growth surge drives earnings despite soaring tech spending

Alibaba Group Holding on Thursday reported revenue growth of 45 per cent for its cloud and artificial intelligence division in the June quarter, driving adjusted profit to a better-than-expected 27.3 billion yuan (US$4 billion). AI Cloud and Compute Services, the Chinese tech giant’s new business segment covering its cloud business and T-Head chip arm, posted 48.4 billion yuan in revenue for the three months ended June 30, marking its fastest growth pace in 22 quarters. The segment’s AI-related...