Usually it's President Barack Obama who's being interviewed.
In a role reversal of sorts, President Obama was put to the task of interviewing Jack Ma, the Chinese Internet billionaire and founder/chairman of Alibaba, as part of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Manila on Wednesday.
The two discussed everything from government's involvement with businesses to the importance of clean technology. President Obama even tried to play "matchmaker" at one point, suggesting Ma might want to invest in the company of Filipina entrepreneur, Aisa Mijeno, who was also on the panel.
The interview could open up more doors for Ma, who Reuters reports is trying to be a player in foreign markets, including the United States, as Alibaba aims to invest abroad.
Part of their discussion had Ma telling Obama how he thinks government and businesses could work together to help young entrepreneurs.
"Government is simple — just reduce the tax, or no tax, for these guys," Ma said to rousing laughter at the summit, as reported by Reuters.
"You got a lot of cheers from your fellow CEOs," Obama said in response.
Ma also shared how Alibaba has been investing 0.3 percent of the company's total revenue into climate change solutions derived from young minds and other environmental issues over the past six years.
Ma even added that he recently had a conversation with Bill Gates about clean technology, which the Alibaba founder and chairman called a "fantastic idea."
It remains to be seen how Ma could impact the U.S. market and others that he delves into.
