Alibaba Group CEO Eddie Wu (Wu Yongming) addressed the resignation of Lin Junyang, the technical lead of the Tongyi Qwen large language model (LLM), in an internal memo on March 5.

Wu emphasized that the company’s strategic focus on foundation models remains unchanged and announced a new leadership structure to bolster AI research.

Following the departure of Lin Junyang—and the subsequent exit of senior scientist Binyuan Hui—Wu confirmed that Zhou Jingren will continue to lead Tongyi Lab. To ensure the steady advancement of AI initiatives, the company has established a Foundation Model Support Group. This group will be directly coordinated by Eddie Wu, Zhou Jingren, and Fan Yu to mobilize group-wide resources.

"Technological development is a race where standing still means falling behind," Wu stated in the memo. "Developing foundation models is our key strategy for the future. We will persist with our open-source strategy while increasing R&D investment and talent acquisition."

Internal sources dismissed rumors suggesting that Lin’s resignation was linked to shifts in open-source strategy or commercial pressures like Daily Active User (DAU) targets.

Lin Junyang, a Peking University alumnus and senior algorithm expert at DAMO Academy, was a pivotal figure in Alibaba’s AI rise. 

On social media, Lin bid a farewell, writing: "Me stepping down. Bye my beloved Qwen." His colleague Binyuan Hui followed shortly after, confirming his own departure.