HANGZHOU, China--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 27, 2026--
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.
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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.
Before (2019) and after (2026) comparison of Ant Forest Project No. 464 in Inner Mongolia.
CAIRO (AP) — An Iranian cargo vessel was struck early Sunday off Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian state media said, and Tehran postponed a plan to brief neighboring countries on its contested efforts to manage shipping in the strait.
The attack drew attention back to the strait after threats to shipping in the Red Sea intensified last week. Iran-backed Houthi rebels battling government forces in Yemen captured an island on the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a crucial shipping alternative to the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran's state-run IRNA news agency quoted the Qeshm governor as blaming a “terrorist enemy” for Sunday's attack, which it said killed one and wounded four.
There was no immediate comment by the U.S. military, which has struck Iranian-flagged vessels during its blockade of Iranian ports and faces a new threat from Iranian ballistic missiles launched at its warships.
Qeshm Island, about 14 miles (22 kilometers) from the port city of Bandar Abbas, is key to Iran asserting control over the Strait of Hormuz.
Hours before the attack, Iran’s government remained defiant. “Our people can’t be bullied into submission. Iran won’t surrender,” President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a social media post.
U.S. President Donald Trump disagreed, saying on Sunday that Iran “wants to make a deal so bad” that “they’re calling constantly.” Trump spoke at his golf course in Doonbeg, Ireland, where he was attending a tournament.
Later, when asked by a reporter whether the U.S. struck the Iranian cargo vessel early Sunday in the Strait of Hormuz, Trump said: “I don’t want to say.” He then boarded Air Force One to head back to Washington.
Iran had said foreign ministers from regional countries would meet Monday in Oman to discuss efforts by Iran and Oman, located on the other side of the strait, to manage shipping on it. But the foreign minister of Oman, Badr Albusaidi, said on X late Sunday that the meeting had been postponed “in the interests of consensus.”
Iran and Oman agreed to postpone the talks “at the request of some regional countries,” said Mohammad Ali Bak, an official in Iran’s foreign ministry who was quoted by IRNA on X.
Saudi Arabia has submitted amendments to the Iran-Oman agreement, citing concerns that the emerging deal could have lasting implications for the Strait of Hormuz that could negatively impact other Gulf Cooperation Council countries, according to a Gulf official familiar with the matter who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Commercial ship traffic remains low in the Strait of Hormuz as attacks continue on what was seen as an international waterway before the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Feb. 28.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations monitor said Sunday that a vessel was hit by a projectile while transiting the strait, though it wasn’t clear if this was referring to the attack Iran had reported off Qeshm. The monitor said a severe fire had broken out and that local authorities were evacuating those on board.
The U.S. has asserted that plenty of oil is getting out as its military helps to guide ships along Oman's coast, at the risk of being struck.
Before the meeting in Oman was postponed, only Iraq had publicly confirmed plans to attend. Bahrain had said it would not attend, citing a lack of diplomatic relations with Tehran.
Since early in the war, Iran has expressed interest in having ships pay fees for transit. It has said traffic into the Persian Gulf would pass through Iranian waters, while the outbound route would pass partly through Iranian waters and partly through Oman’s.
There had been some optimism in the region about the planned meeting, with hope that Gulf nations might use it to assert a collective response to a war they had no part in starting. For months, they have faced Iranian attacks that Tehran has claimed target U.S. military assets on their lands.
On Sunday, Iran’s president said he had a “good talk” over the weekend with a top official from the United Arab Emirates on the sidelines of a global summit of leading developing nations.
Iran has fired thousands of missiles and drones at the Gulf country, a close U.S. ally.
Pezeshkian said he met with Abu Dhabi’s crown prince, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed, while attending the BRICs summit in New Delhi.
“We talked about the issues of concern so that it’s possible to put the past behind us, to look toward the future and how we can build the future together,” Pezeshkian said. His comments were aired live on Iranian state television.
Anna reported from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Amir Radjy in Cairo, Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv, Israel, and Aamer Madhani and Didi Tang in Washington, contributed to this report.
A woman walks past a banner showing portraits of the late Iranian revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini, left, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, center, and the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in northern Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Women hug each other as they react to the camera at the Tajrish square in northern Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A fruit seller waits for customers at the Tajrish square in northern Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A motorboat travels past commercial vessels anchored amid haze in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas, Iran, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
