According to Zhang, the current Tmall business will be upgraded to "Great Tmall", which includes three units: Tmall, Tmall Supermarket and Tmall's import and export business.

The Tmall unit will become a major battlefield of online and offline integration, focusing on digital transformation of brands.

The Tmall Supermarket will promote a new retail sales model by integrating the previous Tmall Supermarket and Taoxianda, the Taobao mobile app's fresh delivery section.

The Tmall import and export unit will realize Alibaba's promise to import $200 billion worth of goods in the next five years, Zhang said in the open letter.

In addition, the CEO announced a series of new arrangements for its logistics arm Cainiao, big data marketing platform Alimama, Alibaba Digital Media & Entertainment Group and the Alibaba AI laboratory.