Jack Ma joins university faculties in Tokyo, Hong Kong

Chinese billionaire Jack Ma, co-founder of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, has been appointed as a visiting professor at the University of Tokyo's Tokyo College and an honorary professor of business at the University of Hong Kong, according to media reports.

Ma is expected to coordinate and conduct research as well as share his expertise in business innovation and development, entrepreneurship, sustainable agriculture and food production.

He is scheduled to join Tokyo College on 1 May, and the University of Hong Kong professorship carries a three-year term ending in March 2026.

These appointments come after he made a rare public appearance in China following a recluse after Alibaba was fined for alleged unfair business practices in China and a government crackdown on the tech industry.

Stating that Ma's business career has come to a close,  Oshadhi Kumarasiri, an analyst at LightStream Research told Bloomberg, "Although he achieved success in this field, he previously worked as an English teacher and had expressed a desire to return to teaching once he retired from his business ventures."

Ma previously taught English for eight years at Hangzhou Dianzi University in the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang before he launched Alibaba.

After his speech criticizing Chinese regulators in 2020, Ma has maintained a low profile, as the planned IPO of Ant Group, an affiliate of Alibaba, was cancelled by Beijing.