Jack Ma (b. 1964)

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Biography

Ma Yun, also known as Jack Ma, is a Chinese businessman and philanthropist. He is the founder of the Jack Ma Foundation, and co-founder of Alibaba Group and Yunfeng Capital. As of May 2025, Ma's net worth was estimated at US$27.2 billion.

In Their Own Words (5)

Young people will have the seeds you bury in their minds and when they grow up they will change the world.

"5 Life Lessons From Alibaba Founder Jack Ma", Time (Sept. 23, 2014) , 2014

In 2001, we went to raise some $3 million in venture capital in the U.S. and got rejected. So we’ve come back and raised a little bit more: $25 billion. This is not money; this is trust from the world, trust from the people.

Charlie Rose Talks to Alibaba's Jack Ma, Bloomberg , 2001

You should learn from your competitor, but never copy. Copy and you die.

, Spotlight: Jack Ma, co-founder of Alibaba.com - Business - International Herald Tribune, by SONIA KOLESNIKOV-JESSOPJAN. 5, 2007 (The New York Times) , 2007

If you don’t give up, You still have a Chance to Win. Giving up is a Great Failure.

Jack Ma Quotes That Will Change Your Life Forever

When you have one billion dollars, that's not your money. That's the trust the society gives [to] you.

Interview by Charlie Rose of Bloomberg - video: 1 minute 53 seconds into the video

Timeline

The story of Jack Ma, told in moments.

1964 Birth

Born Ma Yun in Hangzhou, China. Failed the national college entrance exam twice. Rejected from dozens of jobs, including KFC, where 23 of 24 applicants got hired. He didn't.

Rejected from KFC where 23 of 24 applicants got hired. Does that still sting? Two failed college entrance exams. What kept you going?

1995 Event

Visited the U.S. and used the internet for the first time. Searched "beer" and found no Chinese results. Came home and started China Pages, one of China's first internet companies.

You searched beer on the internet and found no Chinese results. Was that the entire business insight? Coming home from America to start China Pages. Was anyone else seeing what you saw?

1999 Event

Founded Alibaba in his Hangzhou apartment with 17 friends and $60,000. The name was chosen because it was globally recognizable. The company nearly ran out of money twice in the first year.

17 friends and 60,000 dollars in your apartment. Did you believe Alibaba would work? Nearly running out of money twice in the first year. Which time was scarier?

2014 Event

Alibaba went public on the New York Stock Exchange. Raised $25 billion, the largest IPO in history at the time. Ma became the richest person in China overnight.

The largest IPO in history. Richest person in China overnight. How did that feel? Did $25 billion make you more cautious or more bold?

2020 Event

Publicly criticized Chinese financial regulators. The Ant Group IPO was suspended days later. Ma disappeared from public view for nearly three months. When he resurfaced, he'd lost his outspoken edge.

You criticized the regulators and disappeared for three months. What happened? When you resurfaced without the outspoken edge, was that survival or surrender?