Nearly two months after Alibaba Founder Jack Ma’s public absence, media reports claim that the billionaire is not missing, but has been lying low for the time being.

CNBC’s David Faber reported Tuesday morning Ma is being “less visible, purposefully,” but that the businessman hasn’t gone missing.

Ma has been staying away from all spotlight after he had called Chinese regulators too conservative in an October 24 speech and urged them to be more innovative.

He irked regulators with the speech at a business conference in Shanghai attended by some of the regulators he was criticizing. He complained regulators had an antique pawnshop mentality and were hampering innovation, according to Chinese media. He appealed to them to support unconventional approaches to make it easier for entrepreneurs and young people to borrow.

“The October 24 speech just went too far. And like a lot of people there, he understands when you have to lay down and roll over. He is not going to be putting himself in any position where he will be speaking. He is not going to do that. It could be months. But it doesn’t mean that he is missing. He hasn’t been captured, he hasn’t been taken,” Faber added.

Ma, 56, stepped down as Alibaba’s chairman in 2019. However, he is one of the biggest shareholders of the Chinese e-commerce giant.

Alibaba has also decided to shut down its music streaming platform, Xiami Music, from February, indicating the company’s plan to stay away from Chinese entertainment industry.

Jack Ma also failed to appear as scheduled in the final episode of his own talent show, Africa’s Business Heroes. Jack Ma was supposed to be part of the show’s judge panel, but was replaced by an Alibaba executive in the November final. His picture was also taken off the website.

Jack Ma last tweeted on 10 October last year.