Quark began as a browser pitched on being "clean and ad-free" and has since become Alibaba's AI search and productivity platform. It puts search, cloud storage, documents and study tools behind one entry point, on both mobile and desktop. In March 2025 the mobile app was upgraded into the "AI super box," and in November of the same year the desktop Quark AI Browser fully integrated Qwen, Alibaba's AI assistant.
What Quark Is Made Of Today
Mobile app: the AI super box. Built around a single input box, it covers chat, deep search, deep research and photo-based problem solving:
- AI search / deep search: instead of just returning links, it generates structured answers with sources; deep search runs several rounds of retrieval and combines multiple sources before answering.
- AI writing and slides: enter a topic to generate an outline, copy or a presentation.
- Study tools: snap-a-question search, university application planning and note organizing — features students use heavily.
Desktop: the Quark AI Browser. The November 26, 2025 upgrade built Qwen into the browser and the desktop:
- Qwen sidebar: chat in a sidebar while browsing, with answers that draw on the current page.
- Select text or screenshot to ask: highlight a passage or capture part of the screen and have Qwen explain it.
- Quick box: press Alt + Space on Windows (Option + Space on a Mac) to summon Qwen anywhere on the desktop, without switching to the browser first.
- Qwen screen reading: let Qwen watch the current screen and offer problem-solving hints or step-by-step guidance.
The desktop app also bundles AI slides, PDF editing and lecture-video summaries.
Quark cloud drive and documents. High-capacity cloud storage with online documents and image and video previews, connected to search and writing.
How It Relates to Qwen and Lingguang
Alibaba is pushing several AI products at once. According to media reports, the split is: Qwen is the general-purpose assistant, Quark focuses on AI search plus the browser, and Lingguang is positioned as an all-modality productivity tool. The chat in Quark's desktop app is powered by Qwen, so if you mainly want to talk to a model you can use Qwen directly; Quark's difference is that it puts AI into everyday actions such as browsing, searching and managing files.
Use Cases
- Looking things up: AI search gives you conclusions and sources quickly, without clicking through page after page.
- Students: searching questions, organizing mistakes, researching universities and majors, homework help.
- Light office work: drafting copy or a slide deck on your phone and accessing cloud files; on a computer, asking Qwen to summarize and compare while you browse.
Tips
- Check the sources behind answers. Judge AI search conclusions against the sources they cite, and open the originals for data or policy information.
- Think before turning on screen reading and the quick box. Qwen screen reading sees what's on your screen, and the desktop quick box can be summoned over any app. When handling work files or chat history, decide first what is appropriate to hand to AI. For how to set permissions for AI that can operate your computer, see this permissions checklist.
- Treat it as a productivity hub on your phone. The cloud drive and study tools are its edge over pure chat AI.
How It Compares
- For research where rigorous sourcing matters: Metaso AI Search keeps results and citations more focused.
- For reading long documents and long conversations: Kimi.
- If you mostly read English sources and can reach overseas services: Perplexity.
Pricing
Core features such as search and AI writing are free; larger storage, faster downloads and other Quark cloud drive features are unlocked with a membership subscription. See the in-app details for current tiers.