HANGZHOU, China--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Alipay Ant Forest, Ant Group’s green initiative that encourages people to participate in environmental protection through simple, everyday low-carbon actions, today announced that more than 700 million users across China have joined the program as of August 2026. Together, they have helped support the planting of over 700 million trees, contributing to ecological restoration efforts in some of China’s most arid and environmentally fragile regions.
Launched in 2016 within the Alipay app, Ant Forest transforms individual environmental choices into collective climate action. When users make greener lifestyle choices, such as taking public transportation, cycling, paying bills online to avoid paper invoices, or choosing digital services, they earn virtual “green energy points” within the Ant Forest platform. These points can be used to grow virtual trees or support biodiversity conservation initiatives.
Once users accumulate enough points to grow a virtual tree, Ant Group funds the planting of a real tree through partnerships with environmental organizations and other partners. Users can also use their green energy points to support wildlife protection and other biodiversity conservation initiatives.
Based on applications initiated by Ant Forest users through their virtual green energy points, Ant Group has invested more than RMB 5.1 billion (USD 759 million) over the past ten years.
Beyond environmental benefits, Ant Forest has also contributed to local economic development. Its tree-planting initiatives have created approximately 5.2 million job opportunities for local communities and generated RMB 770 million (USD 115 million) in income.
The Ant Forest model has also inspired similar initiatives around the world. In 2019, the Philippines’ leading mobile wallet GCash launched GForest, enabling users to contribute to local reforestation through low-carbon lifestyle choices.
In 2025, DANA and Ant International, together with Conservation International and Konservasi International, unveiled the Ocean Buddy initiative, an interactive in-app mini program to raise awareness and drive long-term public participation in marine conservation among DANA's 200 million users in Indonesia. Ocean Buddy leverages gamification incentives and lively visual designs to enhance broad-based, long-term user participation in conservation efforts, specifically the protection of whale sharks along the southern coast of Java.
About Ant Group
Ant Group is a global digital technology provider and the operator of Alipay, a leading internet services platform in China, connecting over one billion users to more than 10,000 types of consumer services from partners. Through innovative products and solutions powered by AI, blockchain and other technologies, Ant Group supports partners across industries to thrive through digital transformation in an ecosystem for inclusive and sustainable development. For more information, visit www.antgroup.com.
Contacts
Media Inquiries
Yinan Duan
duanyinan.dyn@antgroup.com
Before (2019) and after (2026) comparison of Ant Forest Project No. 464 in Inner Mongolia. |
