Which company did Jack Ma and 17 co-founders establish in 1999 in Hangzhou?

Jack Ma and 17 co-founders established Alibaba Group in 1999 in Hangzhou, China.

The founders created the company as an online business-to-business marketplace intended to connect Chinese manufacturers with overseas buyers. Its first major website was Alibaba.com, whose international focus helped Chinese suppliers reach global customers.

Alibaba later expanded beyond business-to-business commerce. Its businesses came to include the consumer marketplace Taobao, online payments through Alipay’s corporate history, cloud computing, logistics, and digital media. The group’s corporate structure changed over time, and several related businesses became separately organized.

A common mix-up is treating Alibaba and Taobao as the same company. Taobao is a consumer e-commerce platform launched by Alibaba Group in 2003. JD.com is a separate Chinese e-commerce company, while Baidu is primarily associated with internet search and artificial intelligence.