Recently, Jack Ma announced his resignation from Alibaba after more than 19 years of success. At 54 years old, his journey began from a small apartment to building an e-commerce giant valued at over $420 billion, alongside the appointment of Daniel Zhang as his successor as CEO of Alibaba Group.

While Jack Ma is the face of Alibaba, a deeper look reveals that he is joined by 17 other key co-founders who have stood by him since the company's inception in 1999. This raises the question: who are they? This prompted iPrice to research the 18 individuals (including Jack Ma) behind the success of the Alibaba empire, analyzing their backgrounds to create an infographic for easier understanding for readers.

The study uncovered interesting insights into the career paths of the founding group. They did not graduate from similar fields, such as mass communication, investment banking, web development, education, and various other disciplines.

The relationships among Jack Ma and the founders stem from various connections, including former university classmates, ex-colleagues, former students (during his time as a lecturer), and individuals who shared a vision aligned with Jack Ma's. Among the 18 Alibaba founders, three notable pairs include Jack Ma and Cathy Zhang, Shi Yufeng and Jin Yuanying, Toto Sun and Lucy Peng.

Among the 18 co-founders, there are six women holding senior executive positions, such as Lucy Peng, who was recently appointed CEO of Lazada in March 2018. Additionally, nearly all founders play significant roles in managing Alibaba Group and its subsidiaries.

Let's take a closer look at the backgrounds and relationships of each co-founder with Jack Ma, among other details.

Jack Ma

  • Jack Ma was born on September 10, 1964, in Hangzhou, China (during the communist era). In 1988, he graduated with a degree in English from Hangzhou Teacher's Institute and later became an international trade lecturer at Hangzhou Dianzi University. He founded China Yellow Pages (CYP), the first internet business in China. Additionally, Jack Ma managed IT companies for the Ministry of Commerce both domestically and internationally. In 1999, he began meetings with 17 co-founders in his apartment to strategize the development of the first e-commerce business, which is now the renowned Alibaba empire.
  • Currently, Jack Ma is both the CEO and Chairman of Alibaba Group, which has seen exponential growth since its founding in 1999. Alibaba has approximately 617 million mobile users per month and 552 million users in China's retail market (Tmall.com and Taobao).
  • At 54 years old, Jack Ma announced his resignation as Chairman of Alibaba Group within a year to focus on mentoring and supporting Daniel Zhang, who will succeed him.

Jin Jianhang

  • Jin Jianhang is a top student from Fudan Journalism School and has worked for several prominent Chinese media outlets, including Zhejiang Daily and Intl. Business Daily.
  • Jack Ma and Jin Jianhang first met during an interview about China Yellow Pages. As a business journalist, he had multiple opportunities to meet Jack during his tenure as Chairman of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Co-operation (MOFTEC) of the EDI Centre, now known as the Ministry of Commerce of China, where Jack offered him the position of editor-in-chief.
  • In 1999, Jack Ma began founding Alibaba Group with a trusted group of 17 friends, including Jin Jianhang.

Joseph Tsai

  • Joseph Tsai graduated with a bachelor's degree in economics and law. Before meeting Jack Ma, he was an investment banker earning approximately $700k per year.
  • Inspired by Jack's vision for Alibaba, he dared to leave his lucrative job to join as a co-founder in 1999, earning only $50 a month.
  • Today, Joseph Tsai is the Executive Vice Chairman, co-founder of Alibaba Group, and the second-largest shareholder of the company after Jack Ma.

Lucy Peng

  • Lucy Peng has an educational background similar to Jack Ma. She began her career as a finance and economics lecturer at Zhejiang University and married Sun Tongyu in 1997.
  • She left her teaching position in 1999 to support her husband as one of the co-founders of Alibaba.
  • She was recently appointed CEO of Lazada after Alibaba invested over $2 billion in the marketplace.

Cathy Zhang

  • Cathy Zhang first met Jack Ma at Hangzhou Teacher’s Institute, and shortly after graduating, they decided to marry.
  • In 1999, Jack Ma shared his plans for Alibaba with her and the other co-founders.
  • Cathy Zhang is one of the Alibaba co-founders but has since transitioned to being a devoted mother and wife.

Eddie Wu

  • Eddie Wu graduated with a degree in computer science from Zhejiang University of Technology in 1996 and later joined China Yellow Pages.
  • In 1997, he followed Jack Ma to Beijing and had the opportunity to help manage the MOFTEC website.
  • He became one of the co-founders of Alibaba and was the first programmer at Alibaba Group.

James Sheng

  • James Sheng learned traditional arts from a young age and applied his favorite designs commercially. He became acquainted with Jack Ma when his company was hired to design the China Yellow Page website.
  • He attended meetings at Jack Ma's apartment and became one of the co-founders in 1999.
  • Today, James Sheng is the designer of the smile logo, co-founder, and also serves as Senior Vice President of Alibaba.

Lou Wensheng

  • Lou Wensheng and Jack Ma graduated from the same institution, Hangzhou Teacher’s Institute, and later worked together.
  • He decided to join China Yellow Pages as soon as he saw Jack Ma promote the company through a documentary on Oriental Horizon TV in 1995.

Simon Xie

  • Simon Xie graduated with a degree in financial management from Shenyang University of Technology and later worked for China National Air Separation Engineering Co., Ltd. His interest in computers led him to develop basic IT skills for his work.
  • In 1996, he first met Jack Ma at China Yellow Pages. Jack's unique personality inspired him to join as one of the co-founders of Alibaba, even at the cost of leaving a substantial income from his finance job.

Jin Yuanying

  • Jin Yuanying was a student of Jack Ma at Hangzhou Dianzi University and was later encouraged by Jane Jiang and Han Min to join Alibaba.

Zhou Yuehong

  • Zhou Yuehong is a Java architect who first met Jack Ma at Hangzhou Dianzi University. With his expertise in technology, he developed the core code for the MVC – WebX framework, which was the foundational code for Taobao.

Shi Yufeng

  • In 1999, Shi Yufeng worked at the Central Weather Bureau. His interest in technology led him to later join Alibaba.
  • Eddie Wu, one of the co-founders of Alibaba, recognized Shi Yufeng's presence in the internet world and, due to their shared interests, introduced him to Jack Ma, leading to his decision to join Alibaba.

Thanks to the information from thaipublica.org, https://ipricethailand.com/