1688 Opens AI E-Commerce Workspace Accio to Over 100 Million Buyers and 1 Million Suppliers Ahead of Double 11

Accio is described as an operating agent for small and medium-sized enterprises worldwide. Its name means 'summoned at once': users state what they want to do, and the AI carries it out. Unlike general-purpose AI, Accio focuses on e-commerce and business, covering the full chain of finding goods, stocking, closing transactions, repeat purchases and store operations. According to the report, 10 million SME users globally are already using Accio to run their businesses.

For buyers on 1688, many of whom are small and medium-sized enterprises or one-person companies, the platform serves as a supply source while their sales channels extend across Taobao, Tmall, Xiaohongshu, Pinduoduo, Douyin, cross-border e-commerce and instant retail. To meet the combined demand of sourcing across channels and selling on multiple platforms, Accio has introduced two functions. The 'Procurement Assistant' covers both 1688 and Alibaba.com, allowing buyers to find suppliers, compare prices and send inquiries in 128 countries and regions. The 'E-commerce Manager' connects mainstream domestic platforms including Taobao, Tmall, Douyin, Pinduoduo and JD.com, so procurement and store operations can be completed in one workspace without switching between systems.

During the Double 11 preparation period, Accio addresses several pressures facing small merchants. Multi-platform data is automatically aggregated, removing manual spreadsheet work. Store diagnosis outputs priority actions for the day. Advertising analysis identifies the root cause of problems, determining whether they lie in the product, the campaign or the budget. Product materials, from original images to marketing image sets, can be generated with one click, removing the need to wait for design schedules. The report described these as solutions to common problems such as uncertain ad spending, potential stockouts, competitor price cuts, conflicting data across platforms and concentrated demand for materials during promotion stages.

For source manufacturers, the '1688 Business Assistant' can execute a full set of business actions from a single natural-language instruction, according to the report. These include identifying hot-selling trends, intelligent image upload and listing, advertising analysis, receiving potential customers, multi-store management and business decision-making. The assistant connects directly to the merchant backend and integrates 1688's accumulated B2B operating data and AI capabilities.

1688 said its merchants operate under significantly different models: spot goods, including wholesale, dropshipping and distribution; customization, including light and deep customization; and cross-border, including integrated domestic and foreign trade and multi-platform operations. Accio has therefore built three differentiated AI capabilities for these groups.

For spot-goods merchants, the focus is speed and cost savings. Accio can generate complete product details and list them automatically with one click, and can batch-optimize product materials and titles to improve search clicks and conversion.

For customization factories, the focus is professional service and accuracy. Accio can learn a company's knowledge base, understand customization requirements, and answer professional questions about processes, delivery times and quotations. It can also use buyer background checks to uncover demand and automatically follow up on every potential business opportunity 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

For cross-border merchants, the focus is full visibility and transparency. Accio connects directly to multi-platform data and pushes daily dashboards for multiple stores, showing where profit is being made, where losses are occurring and where resources should be prioritized, so owners can see the whole business and make decisions quickly.

The announcement places Accio at the center of 1688's efforts to serve buyers who purchase from 1688 and sell across the internet, as well as suppliers managing increasingly complex sales scenarios. Both groups can activate the workspace as Double 11 approaches.