Domestic gaming revenue rose 15% to 42.8 billion yuan, while international gaming revenue surged 43% to 20.8 billion yuan, buoyed by hits such as Honor of Kings and Peacekeeper Elite, alongside newer titles like Delta Force. Advertising revenue climbed 21% to 36.2 billion yuan, boosted by AI-driven targeting capabilities that enhanced ad performance.
Tencent’s net profit reached 63.1 billion yuan, exceeding the 57.3 billion yuan analyst estimate, highlighting the company’s strong operating efficiency. The firm has been ramping up AI investments, mirroring moves by peers such as Alibaba and U.S. tech majors Microsoft and Google. Tencent has projected that AI-focused capital expenditure will reach the “low teens” as a percentage of revenue in 2025, with third-quarter capex totaling 13 billion yuan compared with 19.1 billion yuan in the previous quarter.
The company’s AI push comes amid heightened technology tensions between China and the U.S., as export restrictions make sourcing advanced AI chips from suppliers like Nvidia increasingly challenging. Tencent has stated that stockpiled AI chips and domestic alternatives will help mitigate potential disruptions.
Tencent has integrated AI across multiple platforms this year. Its super-app WeChat, used by over 1 billion users in China, now incorporates AI models from startup DeepSeek. The company also launched Yuanbao, a ChatGPT-style chatbot that ranks among China’s most popular AI assistants alongside ByteDance’s Doubao.
In addition, Tencent is developing proprietary AI capabilities, including its text-to-image generator Hunyuan Image 3.0, released in September, as well as services that convert text and images into 3D visuals, reflecting its strategy to expand AI integration across social media, gaming, and creative content sectors.