Tencent Posts 15% Revenue Growth in Q3 Driven by AI
Tencent reported revenue of 192.9 billion Chinese yuan for the third quarter of 2025, marking a 15 percent increase compared to the same period last year. The Shenzhen-based technology company surpassed analyst expectations of 189.2 billion yuan as artificial intelligence applications strengthened performance across multiple business segments.
The company’s operating profit reached 63.6 billion yuan on an IFRS basis and 72.6 billion yuan on a non-IFRS basis, both exceeding market forecasts of 58.01 billion yuan. Operating margin improved to 38 percent from 37 percent in the previous year, demonstrating continued operational efficiency despite increased investments in technology infrastructure.
Gaming operations proved particularly robust during the quarter. Domestic games revenue climbed 15 percent year-on-year to 42.8 billion yuan, propelled by newly released titles Delta Force and VALORANT MOBILE. Delta Force ranked among the top three games in China by gross receipts during the period, while VALORANT MOBILE achieved the most successful mobile game launch in China for 2025 based on first-month daily active users and revenue.
International gaming revenue surged 43 percent year-on-year to 20.8 billion yuan, representing the fastest growth among Tencent’s business segments. The expansion stemmed from increased revenue from games developed by subsidiary Supercell, particularly Clash Royale, which reached all-time highs for both monthly active users and gross receipts in September. The newly released Dying Light: The Beast also contributed to growth alongside consolidation of recently acquired studios.
Marketing services revenue jumped 21 percent year-on-year to 36.2 billion yuan, benefiting from higher advertisement impressions and improved targeting capabilities. Artificial intelligence-powered advertising systems enhanced effective cost per thousand impressions across the platform. Advertising spending increased across all major industry categories during the quarter as Tencent expanded ad load on Video Accounts, Mini Programs and Weixin Search.
The company’s financial technology and business services segment generated 58.2 billion yuan in revenue, representing 10 percent growth year-on-year. Commercial payment volumes accelerated compared to the previous quarter, with strong online payment growth and improved offline payment trends in retail and transportation sectors. Cloud services revenue increased as enterprise customers showed higher demand for artificial intelligence-related services.
Tencent’s combined monthly active users for Weixin and WeChat reached 1.414 billion as of September 30, up from 1.382 billion in the same period last year. The company recently launched TenPay Global Checkout, enabling select Weixin merchants to accept payments from outside mainland China.
Artificial intelligence investments continued to drive business improvements across the organization. The company upgraded its HunYuan foundation model, enhancing capabilities in coding, mathematics and science. The HunYuan image generation model ranked first globally among text-to-image models according to LMArena as of mid-November. Management noted that AI applications improved advertising targeting, game engagement, and internal efficiency in areas including coding and content production.
Capital expenditures totaled 13 billion yuan for the quarter, down 24 percent year-on-year, primarily reflecting investments in information technology infrastructure. Free cash flow remained flat at 58.5 billion yuan compared to the prior year period. The company held total cash of 493.3 billion yuan as of September 30, with a net cash position of 102.4 billion yuan.
Tencent repurchased approximately 35.4 million shares on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange during the third quarter for an aggregate consideration of 21.1 billion Hong Kong dollars. Company shares have gained 56.7 percent year-to-date through the reporting date.
