Siemens and Alibaba: Collaborating on AI Manufacturing

Siemens and Alibaba have announced a partnership that will strengthen AI-powered manufacturing. 

The companies will produce 26 new automation and control technologies to execute AI-driven decisions in industries.

Siemens also introduced new AI-powered applications, including predictive maintenance software, designed to optimise industrial operations.

Siemens partnership with Alibaba

Siemens partnership with Alibaba brings 26 new products to the Alibaba cloud, which span industrial infrastructure, automation and AI-powered applications. 

The companies are working to provide computer-aided engineering capabilities and infrastructure as a service to customers in China. The announcement of the partnership and new technology was made in Beijing. 

The partnership seeks to bring industrial simulation software to the Alibaba cloud, including virtual simulation appliances and high-performance computing clusters.

Xiao Song, President and CEO Siemens Greater China, says: “Siemens has long been an indispensable part of China’s industrial ecosystem.

“As we enter the era of Industrial AI, we are more convinced than ever that only a strong ecosystem can truly unlock AI’s vast potential. 

“Siemens is combining its global technological strengths with China’s speed of innovation, industrial scale and rich application scenarios to enable high-quality growth for customers in China and beyond.”

New manufacturing technology

According to Deloitte, Siemens is actively driving product innovation using generative and agentic AI, as demonstrated by its industrial AI agents. AI agents are also transforming manufacturing processes, smart metering and equipment management.

As part of the new technologies announced in Beijing, Siemens announced a new generation of programmable logic controllers that provides performance and memory capacity, which act as the control brain of production lines, coordinating machines in real time.

Shop floor execution of the logic controllers is then enabled through advanced motion technologies, such as compact servo systems, which translate digital commands into highly accurate robotic and machine motion.

Roland Busch, President and CEO of Siemens, says: “Bringing AI into the real world requires more than great models.

“It requires an industrial AI operating system: a technology stack that connects data, software and intelligent hardware. Here in Beijing, we are showing how this system is advancing, with deeper partnerships and new products built around our customers’ real needs. 

“Through Siemens Xcelerator, our open digital business platform, we bring these capabilities together and make industrial AI accessible at scale.”

Siemens will also explore how Alibaba’s Qwen large language models could support AI-driven capabilities in Siemens’ product lifecycle management software.

Manufacturing leaders won’t want to miss Sustainability LIVE: The US Summit, taking place at Navy Pier, Chicago, on April 21–22.

Co-located with Procurement & Supply Chain LIVE, the event unites senior decision-makers at a time when supply chains, sustainability and business performance are more interdependent than ever.

Secure your place now for The US Summit – group booking discounts available.

Industrial AI adoption

According to Deloitte’s 2025 report on the use of agentic AI in manufacturing, while only 6% of manufacturers currently use AI and gen AI systems, nearly a quarter expect to adopt these technologies within two years to streamline concept design, digital prototyping, production planning, and quality assurance in engineering physical products.

Manufacturers have been slow in comparison to other industries to adopt AI technologies into manufacturing processes, which could revolutionise the sector and capture revenue. 

The collaboration between Siemens and Alibaba seeks to accelerate the adoption of AI systems in the sector, by building scalable systems across multiple fronts of the manufacturing process.