bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

sponsorType

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

paywallTypes

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Coco Feng

Chinese social media giant Tencent Holdings said its fourth-quarter profit rose 90 per cent from a year earlier, aided by strong performance from its video-gaming business and more recent promotion of artificial intelligence (AI).
Profit for the three months ended December reached 51.3 billion yuan (US$7.1 billion), exceeding the consensus estimate of 43.9 billion yuan by analysts polled by Bloomberg.
Revenue grew 11 per cent to 172.4 billion yuan, beating estimates of 168.7 billion yuan.
For the full year, the company’s profit rose 68 per cent from a year earlier to 194 billion yuan, while revenue grew 8 per cent to 660.2 billion yuan, in line with estimates of 657.6 billion yuan.
The company said in its financial disclosure that it has “benefited from AI-powered enhancements to [its] advertising platform” and “growth in evergreen games”.
Shares of the Hong Kong-listed company closed down 0.2 per cent to HK$540 on Wednesday before the earnings release.
We believe stepped-up investments will generate … longer term value from accelerated consumer usage of our AI applications and enterprise adoption.
Tencent CEO Pony Ma Huateng
Tencent has been looking for new growth opportunities amid its push for the adoption of its self-developed Hunyuan large language model across various industries, while also building out AI infrastructure for enterprise clients. Earlier this month, its Yuanbao chatbot overtook DeepSeek as the most downloaded free app in China’s iOS App Store.
Tencent said it is preparing for “breakout growth in consumer adoption of AI, via the Yuanbao and Weixin applications”, using the Chinese name for WeChat.
Tencent chairman and CEO Pony Ma Huateng said the company had reorganised the AI teams to sharpen focus on product innovation and deep model research, as well as increase its marketing efforts for AI products.
“We believe these stepped-up investments will generate ongoing returns via uplifting productivity in our advertising business and longevity of our games, as well as longer term value from accelerated consumer usage of our AI applications and enterprise adoption of our AI services,” he said.
The operator of WeChat, China’s largest social media platform, added a download button for Yuanbao in the app last month. WeChat’s monthly active users were up 3 per cent to 1.39 billion last year.
The company said that “query volume rapidly increased in Weixin Search, benefiting from integrating AI capabilities which enhance the relevance and quality of search results”.
Revenue from the fintech and business services segment, which includes cloud computing and AI, rose 4 per cent to 212 billion yuan last year, owing to growth in wealth management services and commercial payment services, as well as e-commerce technology service fees.
Revenue from value-added services, including the company’s video-gaming and social network businesses, rose by 7 per cent to 319.2 billion yuan for the year.


China’s video gaming market experienced a strong recovery last year, having emerged from a 2021 industry crackdown that included an eight-month freeze in granting licences for new titles and gameplay restrictions on minors, leaving the industry bruised for months. Beijing licensed 1,306 domestic games and 110 foreign titles in 2024, an increase from the previous year’s 977 local titles and 98 imported ones.
The past year also brought unprecedented attention to Chinese game developers after the release of Black Myth: Wukong, heralded as the country’s first AAA game, which sold 10 million copies in its first four days on the market. It has garnered positive reviews overseas, and in December won Best Action Game and the Players’ Voice awards at The Game Awards in Los Angeles.
Tencent is a backer of Black Myth developer Game Science, founded by a former Tencent game designer.
Some Tencent titles also showed strong performance last year, including action role-playing game Dungeon & Fighter Mobile, which became an instant hit in China after its release in May.


Tencent fourth-quarter profit surges 90% on strong gaming, AI performance

5 of China’s richest men in 2025 – net worths, ranked: from the founder of TikTok’s parent company to Tencent’s Pony Ma and the CEO of Tesla’s battery supplier … but No 1 isn’t a tech entrepreneur

China’s Xi Jinping calls for economic transition on Guizhou visit

Hong Kong stocks hover at 3-year high before Fed meeting, Tencent results

Tencent

Tencent has made a big bet on artificial intelligence and is pushing for the use of its Hunyuan large language model across various industries. Photo: Reuters

Tencent’s AI chatbot dethrones DeepSeek in China’s iOS app store amid fierce competition

The Tencent headquarters building in Shenzhen, in China’s southern Guangdong province. Photo: AFP

A person uses the DeepSeek app on a mobile phone, February 17, 2025. Photo: Xinhua

Tencent heats up AI video-generation competition in China with new open-source product

China’s crowded field of artificial intelligence video-generation models includes products from Tencent Holdings, Kuaishou Technology, ByteDance and Alibaba Group Holding. Photo: Shutterstock

The landing page of Tencent Holdings’ HunyuanVideo foundation model, which was used to develop the company’s new open-source HunyuanVideo-I2V model. Photo: SCMP

Tencent’s Weixin Pay chases Chinese tourists in Singapore with Sentosa deal

Resort World Sentosa in Singapore. Photo: AFP

A QR code for a Weixin mini-program designed for Chinese tourists visiting Sentosa. Photo: Handout

Restaurants at Quayside Isle in Sentosa Cove, Singapore. Photo: Roy Issa

AI training for Hong Kong pupils as tech giant Tencent launches academy

Tencent senior executive vice-president Dowson Tong (left) says  the academy will closely collaborate with local schools. Photo: Eugene Lee

Paul Chan says training will significantly enhance young people’s interest in technology.  Photo: Eugene Lee

DeepSeek’s success lies in start-up’s singular focus on innovation, AI scientist says

Asset id: 2592421365&#xA;&#xA;Smartphone displaying the Deepseek logo with the Chinese flag in the background. China and artificial intelligence are thriving on the global stage. 01.03.2025. İstanbul, Türkiye. Shutterstock Images

Artificial intelligence scientist Yang Hongxia, the associate dean for global engagement at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, discusses DeepSeek’s success at a forum last week. Photo: Handout

Yang Hongxia, associate dean for global engagement at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, speaks at the event “DeepSeek and Beyond” held last week. Photo: Handout

Tech

Big Tech

News

China

Business

China Business

Profit reaches US$7.1 billion for the quarter, while full-year profit rises to US$26.8 billion


Profit reaches US$7.1 billion for the quarter, while full-year profit rises to US$26.8 billion.
