OceanBase, a database company backed by Jack Ma, is planning to raise RMB 2 billion to RMB 3 billion, strengthening its AI database lineup.

PANews July 29, according to Bloomberg, OceanBase, a database company backed by Jack Ma, is in talks with investors for a Series A funding round, aiming to raise about RMB 2 billion to RMB 3 billion (about $295 million to $443 million) to support independent operations and accelerate the development of its AI database business. OceanBase was originally developed in 2010 to meet Ant Group’s internal database needs, and it has supported Ant Group’s ability to handle 500k transactions per second during major sales events such as “Double 11.”

Insiders say OceanBase is currently strengthening its AI analytics capabilities, and in addition to processing structured data, it is also improving its ability to handle semi-structured and unstructured data such as video. The goal is to become a key infrastructure connecting enterprise data with AI models and AI Agent. To facilitate a future spin-off listing, OceanBase established an independent board of directors in 2024 and set up an employee equity incentive plan. In addition, another insider said that Ant Digital Technologies, the enterprise services unit under Ant Group, is also exploring independent financing options.