Alibaba and Tencent Submit Algorithm Details of Their Apps - China Regulatory Authority

China's top internet watchdog said on Friday that tech giants such as Tencent Holdings (OTC:TCEHY) and Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) Group have submitted details of algorithms used in some of their products, complying with an effort by authorities to tighten oversight of platform algorithms.

The rules are part of Beijing's wider regulatory crackdown on the once free-flowing tech sector. State media had accused internet platforms of using algorithms to violate user privacy and influence their preferences. The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) published a list of 30 algorithms used in some of the country's most popular apps, including Alibaba's Taobao, Tencent's Wechat, Meituan and ByteDance's Douyin, along with brief descriptions of their use and assigned them classification numbers. This was the first list China has published since it adopted new regulations on algorithm recommendation services in March and introduced a filing system that requires firms to disclose what they use in their apps. For example, the CAC's list said that Taobao's app records a recommendation algorithm that examines each user's visit and search history to recommend products and services, while Meituan provided details of the algorithm it uses to predict delivery times and match drivers. Other companies on the list included Chinese online search giant Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU), short video platform Kuaishou and microblogging site Sina's (NASDAQ:SINA) Weibo (NASDAQ:WB).