Platform Governance, AI-Driven Organizational Transformation, and Competitive Resilience: A Comparative Institutional Analysis of Amazon and Alibaba in the Digital Economy

Abstract

The expansion of the digital economy has fundamentally transformed global business systems, corporate governance structures, and competitive market dynamics. This article examines how platform-based corporations strategically integrate artificial intelligence (AI), institutional governance mechanisms, and organizational transformation to strengthen competitive resilience within increasingly volatile digital markets. Using a comparative institutional analysis of Amazon and Alibaba, the study investigates how governance configurations, innovation systems, strategic adaptation, and regulatory environments shape firm-level outcomes in two distinct political-economic contexts: the liberal market economy of the United States and the state-coordinated digital capitalism model of China. Drawing upon corporate disclosures, OECD and World Bank datasets, digital market indicators, regulatory reports, and contemporary business scholarship, the article develops a multi-level analytical framework linking platform governance, AI capability development, organizational adaptation, and market competitiveness. The findings indicate that AI-enabled operational integration enhances productivity and ecosystem control; however, governance asymmetries and institutional dependencies significantly influence organizational flexibility, regulatory legitimacy, and long-term strategic resilience. Amazon demonstrates superior adaptive governance through decentralized innovation and data-driven operational scalability, whereas Alibaba exhibits stronger ecosystem coordination but greater exposure to regulatory intervention and institutional concentration risks. The comparative evidence demonstrates that sustainable competitive advantage in digital platform economies depends not solely on technological sophistication, but on the interaction between governance transparency, institutional legitimacy, strategic agility, and ecosystem-based innovation coordination. This article contributes to business and economics scholarship by advancing an institutional-strategic interpretation of AI-driven platform transformation and by identifying governance capability as a critical mediator between digital innovation and long-term economic resilience.