<div id="readability-page-1">Hours after Alibaba Group Holding began offering freebies including bubble tea through its artificial intelligence app Qwen on Friday, a surge in downloads pushed the chatbot past Tencent Holdings’ Yuanbao to the top of China’s Apple App Store, climbing from 10th place a day earlier. More than 10 million free orders – worth 250 million yuan (US$36 million) – were placed within nine hours using vouchers capped at 25 yuan through Qwen, its team said on its official Weibo account. The surge in traffic and orders temporarily disrupted the campaign and overwhelmed many storefronts across mainland China, according to shop owners posting on social media platforms. Alibaba joined other Chinese Big Tech firms, including Tencent and Baidu, in a high-stakes battle for Spring Festival attention. Tencent and Baidu committed a combined 1.5 billion yuan to their digital red packet giveaways to win customers for their flagship AI assistant apps.  Analysts said the Hangzhou-based e-commerce giant was achieving two goals with one campaign, attracting new users to Qwen while driving growth for its e-commerce and on-demand delivery businesses, according to Zhuang Shuai, founder and chief analyst at e-commerce consultancy Bailian. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post. They also said it remained uncertain whether any immediate gains would last. The free bubble teas were part of a 3 billion yuan campaign that Alibaba planned to distribute through its flagship AI app, anchoring its Spring Festival promotions across its sprawling ecosystem, from online shopping platform Taobao and on-demand delivery service Shangou to its travel booking and ticketing businesses. Vouchers were also eligible for fresh produce and meals sold through Alibaba’s on-demand and online supermarket services. Baidu was among the first Big Tech firms to launch a red packet war in late January to promote its AI assistant, followed by Tencent, which pledged 1 billion yuan to boost adoption of Yuanbao. Tencent’s promotion helped Yuanbao unseat ByteDance’s Doubao – which had dominated China’s Apple App Store in recent months – before Qwen’s bubble tea campaign overtook it. Freebies and red packets were “tried-and-tested tricks” especially in holiday seasons, but their long-term impact remained uncertain, said Li Chengdong, founder and chief analyst at consultancy Dolphin Think Tank. “Whether it’s [Tencent and Baidu’s] red packet war or [Alibaba’s] bubble tea campaign, [such promotions deliver] immediate gains,” Li said. “But whether these will help retain users in the long run, that’s still a question mark. Eventually what matters is whether a product or service is attractive enough for a consumer.”</div>

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<p>Alibaba's Qwen chatbot surged to the top of China's Apple App Store after offering free bubble tea, surpassing Tencent's Yuanbao. Over 10 million orders worth 250 million yuan were placed within nine hours, causing disruptions at storefronts. This campaign is part of Alibaba's 3 billion yuan Spring Festival promotion, aiming to attract new users and boost its e-commerce and delivery services. Analysts question the long-term effectiveness of such promotions, noting that while they drive immediate gains, user retention remains uncertain.</p>

Sweet surge: Qwen overtakes Yuanbao after Alibaba’s bubble tea campaign