Alibaba Cloud Tackles AI Computing Costs Head-On

As AI agents become increasingly sophisticated, their hunger for computing power grows exponentially - sometimes consuming 100 to 1,000 times more resources than traditional chatbots. Recognizing this challenge, Alibaba Cloud has revamped its Coding Plan service with both power and affordability in mind.

Model Freedom Comes Standard

The upgraded plan includes access to four cutting-edge programming models:

• Qwen3.5-Plus
• Qwen3-Coder-Next
• GLM-4.7
• Kimi-K2.5

What sets this apart? Developers can freely switch between these models without changing subscriptions or configurations - a game-changer for teams working across different coding environments.

Pricing That Turns Heads

Alibaba Cloud isn't just offering more options; they're making them shockingly affordable:

• Lite Package: 18,000 requests/month → 7.9 yuan (first month)
• Pro Package: 90,000 requests/month → 39.9 yuan (first month)

This pricing undercuts competitors by offering similar capabilities at less than 5% of standard market rates. The move follows their earlier reduction of Qwen3.5-Plus API pricing to just 0.8 yuan per million tokens.

Why This Matters Now

The timing couldn't be better. As tools like Claude Code and OpenClaw gain popularity, developers face mounting "computing anxiety" from complex AI tasks requiring multiple tool calls and planning rounds.

Small businesses and individual developers stand to benefit most from these cost reductions, potentially accelerating adoption across the industry.

Key Points:

• Four premium programming models now available in one package
• Unprecedented introductory pricing starting at 7.9 yuan
• Model-switching flexibility addresses diverse development needs
• Significant cost reduction compared to market alternatives