Alibaba’s Cainiao Network to Open Five New Global Hubs in Asia, Europe and Middle East

On May 31 at the 2018 Global Smart Logistics Summit hosted by Cainiao Network Technology Co., Ltd., the logistics affiliate of Alibaba Group Holding Limited showcased its new technologies and unveiled plans to expand its global network by opening five new hubs around the world.

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During the summit, Cainiao presented its “Future Park” solution, a new state-of-the-art logistics complex inside Cainiao’s Logistics Park in the city of Wuxi, that will house a smart warehouse, offices and shops. The smart warehouse will be equipped with automated assembly lines with robotic arms and more than 500 automatic guided vehicle robots, expected to save some 50,000 steps per warehouse staff per day.

Cainiao also announced their plans to open five new global hubs in Asia, Europe and Middle East. Dubai, Hangzhou, Kuala Lumpur, Liège (Belgium) and Moscow are among the first batch of cities being considered. More details of the expansion plan is expected to be announced at a later stage.

“This network is not only national, but global,” said Jack Ma, co-founder and executive chairman of Alibaba Group, who also attended the summit. “As the industry will increasingly become tech-driven, Cainiao aims to be the ‘brain’ of the logistics industry. Since the first day of its birth, Cainiao’s mission is not to deliver goods, but to help delivery firms to deliver goods by building a network that links all logistics elements and connects every deliver person, every warehouse, every hub, every city, and every house.”

China’s logistics landscape has undergone massive change in recent years, reaching unprecedented scale. Just two days ago, Alibaba Group and Cainiao Network also announced their strategic investment of $1.38 billion in a leading Chinese express delivery company ZTO Express.

“Today, the industry can process 100 million packages a day. In the future, we will need to process 1 billion packages a day. The logistics industry need to get prepared for that with a robust infrastructure,” said Ma.