In 2018, Jack Ma announced he was planning to retire from Alibaba to pursue other endeavors.

Now, on his 55th birthday, the former English teacher officially stepped down as executive chairman of China's largest company.

Jack Ma Hands Over Alibaba To CEO Daniel Shang

In a rockstar outfit, the billionaire formally announced he will leave Alibaba at an event for thousands of Alibaba employees on Tuesday. During the four-hour celebration, Ma delivered on his promise to hand over the management of the e-commerce company to CEO Daniel Shang.

Ma said he will start a new life at the event on Tuesday

"I do believe the world is good, there are so many opportunities, and I love excitement so much, which is why I will retire early," he said.

Alibaba Under Jack Ma's Leadership

Ma co-founded Alibaba with 17 other people in 1999, and helped build the company into a $420 billion empire.

The e-commerce company now caters more than 500 million Chinese customers using the site to buy virtually everything from condoms to prefab houses. Alibaba has also branched out to online banking, digital payments, cloud computing, digital media, and entertainment, and now employs about 100,000 people.

Over the past two decades of holding the rein of Alibaba, Ma became China's richest man with a net worth of more than $40 billion.

Despite amassing wealth, Jack Ma thinks there is more for him than Alibaba.

"As for myself, I still have lots of dreams to pursue," Ma said. "I also want to return to education, which excites me with so much blessing because this is what I love to do. The world is big, and I am still young, so I want to try new things."

Philanthropic Endeavors

Ma plans to engage in a new endeavor to improve education through philanthropy, following the steps of Microsoft founder Bill Gates who has dedicated his life on improving healthcare and reducing poverty.

Ma wants his earnings from Alibaba to be used to positively change the education system in China.