Jack was born in 1964, in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. He graduated in 1988 with a bachelor's degree in English from Hangzhou Teacher's Institute (now Hangzhou Normal University), and initially worked as an English teacher at the Hangzhou Electronics and Engineering Institute (now Hangzhou Dianzi University). 

Jack worked as an interpreter. It was during a trip to the United States in 1995 that Jack was introduced to the Internet. On his return, he borrowed US$2,000 and founded Chinapages.com, reputedly one of China's first online commercial directories. Between 1997 and 1999, Jack used this experience in his role as Head of Information at the China International Electronic Commerce Centre of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation (MOFTEC). Jack developed some of MOFTEC's most high profile Internet projects, including the China Market website. It was reportedly during this period that Jack realized the potential of the business-to-business e-commerce model and established a key friendship with Yahoo cofounder Jerry Yang.

In 1999, Jack became the lead founder of Alibaba Group. He serves as Chairman and CEO.

Under Jack's entrepreneurial leadership, Alibaba rapidly expanded into a conglomeration of various e-commerce businesses and affiliated entities. The company formed with an initial investment of US$60,000 and operated out of Jack's Hangzhou apartment, but within the year Jack had raised an additional US$25 million from investors. In 2000, he said, "In circumstances like this, one must run as fast as a rabbit but be as patient as a turtle." Alibaba.com, the flagship online business-to-business platform had reached a profit by 2002. In 2003, Jack launched both Taobao.com, a consumer-to-consumer online marketplace, and Alipay, a third-party online payment platform. In 2005, Jack took Alibaba into a strategic partnership with Yahoo. Yahoo invested US$1 billion for a 40% stake, while Alibaba assumed control over China Yahoo. Alibaba.com listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2007, becoming the second largest Internet company IPO to date, after Google. Jack expanded the portfolio of e-commerce ventures again in 2008 with Tmall.com, a business-to-consumer online shopping platform focused on brand-name goods.

However, Alibaba's rise to become the dominant e-commerce player in China has not been without a number of high profile setbacks. In 2011, customers' trust in Alibaba.com was damaged when in a drive to expand the user base, 2,236 dealers were granted trusted "gold" status only to subsequently defraud buyers. In the same year, the US government named Taobao.com for enabling the sale of counterfeit goods. In his defence, Jack argued that, "We have done our best to fight against fake products. I want to tell everyone that no matter online or offline, the good guys outnumber bad guys and good commodities outnumber bad commodities." Jack has always maintained that his primary mission is to champion small enterprises, but his decision to raise prices in an effort to tackle piracy angered these very same customers. In reference to this period, Jack has said, "I was so lonely at that time," and that "Nobody wanted to believe Jack Ma." In 2011, it emerged that Jack had reportedly transferred ownership of Alipay to a private firm under his control. This controversial move caused further reputational damage.

Ironically, in June 2012 Jack said, "This is not a business that belongs to Jack Ma." And yet, he has continued to tighten his grip on the group though a process of organizational restructuring. In 2012, he negotiated a much-desired deal with Yahoo to buy back half of their 40% stake for US$7.1 billion. This values Alibaba at around US$35 billion. Remarking on the deal, Jack said, "We are grateful for Yahoo’s support of our growth over the past seven years, and we are pleased to be able to deliver meaningful returns to our shareholders including Yahoo." Shareholders also approved plans to privatize the Hong Kong-listed Alibaba.com. Moreover, Jack refocused Alibaba around seven major business groups. He wrote, "We must accelerate the implementation of the 'One Company' strategy and effectively integrate B2B’s system with Taobao’s market system so as to truly create a mechanism for openness, synergy and sharing." Collectively, these steps open the way for the much anticipated Alibaba Group IPO in the near future. Given the controversy over Jack's handling of Alipay, it remains to been seen how the investment community will approach this flotation.  

The impressive expansion of Jack's company has been fuelled by the phenomenal growth in online spending in China. Jack has acknowledged this, stating "Of course, the rapid rise of both Alibaba and Taobao owe more to the need of the country at this time than to our power." Alibaba businesses currently account for 71% of consumers’ online purchases. Between January and November 2012, Taobao Marketplace and Tmall.com reached a combined gross merchandise volume (GMV) of RMB1 trillion. This surpassed Amazon and eBay to make Alibaba the largest e-commerce company in the world by annual GMV. Jack said, "It's very likely that next year, our transaction volume will be bigger than all the American e-commerce companies combined." On the downside, the group has already experimented with a variety of growth strategies. Moreover, with a personal stake in Alibaba already worth an estimated US$2.6 billion, some have seen signs that he may be losing focus. Jack himself has said, "I am going to enjoy some other things apart from business." Consequently, one of the greatest leadership challenges now facing Jack is the need to maintain his company's momentum in the face of growing competition in the e-commerce market from the likes of Tencent and Wal-Mart.

On e-commerce, Jack has observed:

"E-commerce in China has actually created a national or even a global miracle."

On e-commerce in the US, Jack has said:

"Relatively speaking, doing e-commerce in the United States is tough, because the country’s whole credit system, logistics system and commodity circulation system have been fully optimized by Wal-Mart."

On politics, Jack has remarked:

"Remember, I’ve said before, I don’t like politics, I’m not good at politics, I’m not on the left or the right. If I was good at politics, then I wouldn’t be a businessman today."

Jack is responsible for the overall strategy and focus of Alibaba Group. He has been described as feisty, with keen entrepreneurial instincts. In China, Jack has been called the entrepreneur's entrepreneur. In 2000, he became the first mainland China entrepreneur to appear on the cover of Forbes. Barron's named him one of the World's Top 30 CEOs in 2008.

Having taken on the likes of Yahoo, eBay, and Baidu, Jack has gained a reputation for challenging competitors. Some have compared him in this regard to the late Steve Jobs of Apple. In reference to Baidu he said:

"People ask why I got involved in search engines. The reason is not to let Baidu sleep soundly. If Baidu sleeps well, then Internet users in China cannot sleep well." 

In terms of motivation, Jack has stated:

"Making money is ethical. And a business that isn’t making money is regretful. You might as well do a social enterprise! […] We make money because we want to serve more people in the future." He has also remarked, "I believe if a company wants to succeed, it has to confront social needs and solve social problems instead of just catching one or two opportunities." Moreover, Jack holds the belief that "there are too many opportunities out there," and that his role as a business leader is to decide on which opportunities to focus.

On the subject of crisis management, Jack believes that:

"If you know something bad is coming, get ready for it, instead of screaming and complaining." 

As a leader, Jack is not afraid of making mistakes. He has said:

"If you want to learn how other people succeed, it's very difficult because there are so many things they do that are the result of luck. If you learn how people fail, you'll benefit a lot." Jack has admitted that "I have made many mistakes. The book I really want to write about is Alibaba's 1001 mistakes."

1. You are one of China's most successful internet entrepreneurs, and yet you have been quoted as saying "I know nothing about technology." In your opinion, just how important is it for a CEO to have a practical, nuts-and-bolts knowledge of the specific industry in which their business operates? 

2. You have reportedly said that shareholders should come last, after customers and employees. If the Alibaba Group IPO goes ahead, how do you aim to win the confidence of potential shareholders considering investing in the newly floated company? 

3. Unlike many of your fellow leading entrepreneurs, you have chosen to retain your company's HQ in your hometown of Hangzhou, rather than relocating to Beijing or Shanghai. In what ways do you feel this choice of location has made Alibaba a better business?

Orville Schell, a friend and former dean at the University of California, Berkeley, has said of Jack:

"Business is not his first love."

Michael Clendenin, managing director of RedTech Advisors in Shanghai has said:

"In e-commerce, Jack Ma is the house—and the house always wins."

Alibaba Group

AllThingsD

Bloomberg Businessweek

Business Insider

Caixin Online

DigiCha

Silu 

TechCrunch

Tech in Asia

The Economist