As AI adoption gained momentum during the 2026 Chinese New Year, Ant Group announced that both Alipay AI Pay and its AI health app AQ have each surpassed the 100 million user milestone.
AI Payments Surge as Chinese New Year Boosts Alipay AI Pay Usage
From grabbing bubble tea and coffee to purchasing movie tickets, Chinese consumers increasingly relied on AI-powered payment services during this year’s holiday, fueling a significant spike in Alipay AI Pay activity.
On February 23, Alipay AI Pay exceeded 100 million users, becoming the world’s first AI-native payment platform to reach this milestone. This surge underscores the growing mainstream adoption of AI-driven financial tools. Between February 5 and 11, the platform processed over 120 million transactions, highlighting its rapid uptake during the holiday period.
Launched in 2025, Alipay AI Pay provides a secure and intuitive payment experience by leveraging AI agents. Users can complete transactions via voice commands, eliminating the need to navigate multiple screens or apps. This seamless interaction positions Alipay AI Pay as a frictionless, intelligent alternative to traditional digital payments.
As agentic commerce gains traction in China, Alipay AI Pay has expanded across multiple scenarios, including AI-powered mini programs for physical retailers like Luckin Coffee, AI smart glasses from Rokid, and Alibaba’s Qwen AI application for consumer use. These integrations demonstrate the platform’s versatility and the growing commercialization of AI-enabled payments.
AQ Becomes the Largest AI-Native Health App Globally
During this Chinese New Year, AQ gained remarkable momentum through word-of-mouth promotion and targeted marketing efforts. Over the holiday period, the standalone AQ app surpassed 100 million total users, establishing itself as the world’s largest AI-native health application.
A notable trend was young users returning to their hometowns and introducing AQ to family members. Data from February 9 to 21 indicates that 52% of new users came from third-tier cities and smaller towns, highlighting the app’s expansion beyond major metropolitan areas. The most frequently accessed features included health Q&A, AI skin analysis, voice consultations, personalized health goals, and digital medical records.
This growth translated into a surge in downloads, with AQ topping China’s Apple App Store overall download rankings for several consecutive days during the holiday.
In addition, Chinese travelers relied increasingly on AQ to manage personal health while abroad. Between February 9 and 21, usage among users traveling internationally rose 106% compared with January, reflecting the app’s utility in managing health concerns related to climate, diet, and environmental changes.
Strategic Focus on Specialized AI Applications
These achievements reflect Ant Group’s focused approach to AI deployment. While many competitors aim for broad, general-purpose AI applications, Ant has concentrated on high-value, high-trust sectors such as payments and healthcare, where expertise and reliability are critical.
This strategy builds on Ant Group’s long-standing philosophy: leveraging technology to address real-world challenges, deliver solutions in targeted scenarios, and provide tangible benefits to users, all while establishing sustainable competitive advantages.
About Ant Group
Ant Group is a global digital technology provider and the operator of Alipay, a leading internet services platform in China, connecting over one billion users to more than 10,000 types of consumer services from partners. Through innovative products and solutions powered by AI, blockchain and other technologies, Ant Group supports partners across industries to thrive through digital transformation in an ecosystem for inclusive and sustainable development. For more information, visit www.antgroup.com.
