Jack Ma-Backed Ant’s Profit Fell 79% on AI, Health Care Costs

Ant Group Co.’s quarterly profit continued to decline after the company increased investment in artificial intelligence technology for its health care, large language model and payment services.

The fintech company contributed 375 million yuan ($55 million) of profit to Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., which owns a third of Ant. That translates to an estimated 1.13 billion yuan in profit for the three months ended Dec. 31, a 79% decline from a year earlier, according to Bloomberg calculations based on Alibaba’s earnings report.

Alibaba’s revenue rose 3% for the three months ended March. Ant, whose results lag behind Alibaba’s ...