Alibaba 1688 to Launch UTP Open Standard for AI-Era B2B Trade
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The company says the protocol is intended to enable interoperability between AI systems handling B2B transactions.
Alibaba’s 1688 said it will launch its UTP universal transaction protocol by the end of July, positioning it as an open standard for interoperable B2B transactions in the AI era.
The company announced the plan on July 17 at the 2026 World Artificial Intelligence Conference.
According to 1688, B2B commerce is evolving toward an agent-to-agent, or A2A, model, in which a buyer’s AI can connect with a factory’s AI to complete transactions automatically. The company said different AI systems currently lack a common industry transaction protocol.
1688 said UTP is intended to provide shared transaction infrastructure for this emerging A2A-era B2B model.
- 氪星晚报｜阿里1688将推出AI时代B2B交易互联互通开放标准；英特尔与Google Cloud宣布深化战略合作；铁路部门试点提前60天预约购票服务-36氪36kr.com / Mainstream / Published JUL 17, 2026 / Accessed JUL 19, 2026