Alibaba has discontinued the free tier for its Qwen Code AI coding agent, directing users to third-party providers or a $50 monthly subscription. This follows fellow Chinese AI firm MiniMax changing its model’s license to restrict commercial use shortly after launch. The moves signal a shift away from free services that fueled Chinese open-source models’ rise to nearly 30% of global usage, amid tightening U.S. chip controls and investor pressure for returns.
Alibaba has shut down the free tier for its Qwen Code terminal coding agent. The company’s GitHub repository now states “Qwen OAuth free tier has been discontinued.”
Users are now directed to check Alibaba Cloud Coding Plan, OpenRouter, or Fireworks AI, or bring their own API key. The Coding Plan Pro subscription runs for $50 per month.
This change came 48 hours after Chinese AI company MiniMax made a similar move. MiniMax launched its powerful M2.7 model then immediately rewrote the license to require written authorization for commercial use.
MiniMax said the change was to protect against bad-faith hosting providers shipping degraded versions. “They walk away thinking MiniMax is mid,” the company’s Head of Developer Relations posted.
These shifts are not accidental, as reported by the Financial Times. The publication notes Alibaba’s own Qwen team has been moving toward proprietary development after key leadership departures.
Chinese open-source models grew from 1.2% of global open-model usage in late 2024 to roughly 30% by the end of 2025. Qwen overtook Meta’s Llama as the most deployed self-hosted model globally.
That adoption was built on free services. With U.S. chip export controls tightening and investor pressure mounting, sustaining free tiers has become more difficult.
Those wishing to run Alibaba’s models locally and free can still do so, as the models remain open source. However, the more powerful versions require significant hardware to operate.
