MuleRun lowers adoption hurdles, positioning Alibaba’s agentic AI as a safer alternative, with reach across 43 countries
2-MIN READ2-MIN1 ListenVincent ChowPublished: 9:00pm, 28 May 2026A new Chinese artificial intelligence agent platform is looking to replicate the “lobster craze” sparked by AI agent tool OpenClaw earlier this year, while avoiding some of the privacy and security risks associated with the open-source software.MuleRun, developed by Chinese tech giant Alibaba Group Holding, offers a one-stop service for users to access a range of different AI agents.
The platform, showcased at the Alibaba Cloud summit on May 20, has been billed as an “always-on AI workforce” that can help users easily tap AI agents for research, reports, coding and other complex tasks.
Who is behind MuleRun?
The platform was developed by a team led by Chen Yusen, a vice-president at Alibaba Cloud and a graduate of the prestigious Zhejiang University, the alma mater of many other Chinese AI heavyweights including DeepSeek founder Liang Wenfeng.Advertisement
According to his LinkedIn profile, Chen joined Alibaba in 2023, first as a researcher in the CEO’s office before overseeing the global expansion of the Hangzhou-based company, including a stint in Mexico City.
Alibaba says MuleRun serves businesses and users in 43 countries including China, Brazil and Mexico. Photo: AP
What can MuleRun do?
Initially launched last September as an “AI agent marketplace”, MuleRun has since transitioned to a broader AI productivity platform offering agents for different tasks, including video generation, stock analysis and social media management.AdvertisementSelect VoiceSelect Speed0.8x0.9x1.0x1.1x1.2x1.5x1.75x00:0000:001.00x
