On November 12, Tencent management stated during the company's 28th anniversary live stream that it will accelerate organizational transformation to meet the development needs of the AI era. The management pointed out that this adjustment differs from the cost-cutting measures of a few years ago, focusing instead on actively promoting efficiency improvements and encouraging teams to create new value. According to sources familiar with the matter, Tencent plans to categorize internal resources into two groups: 50% of personnel will focus on existing core businesses, consolidating operations through efficiency enhancements; the other 50% will explore directions such as AI Native, expanding new development opportunities.
At the same time, middle management needs to be more flat and agile, actively seeking new business methods and market opportunities internally.
In response to recent rumors that "Tencent plans to lay off 50% of its staff," the source stated that such claims are completely unfounded. This change is part of a reallocation of company resources to adapt to the AI era, and the "50%" figure may stem from a misinterpretation of the aforementioned resource allocation. Tencent has continued to increase its investment in AI this year. The second-quarter financial report released on August 12 showed that the company's revenue for the quarter was 204.79 billion yuan, an 11% year-on-year increase; Non-IFRS operating profit was 75.64 billion yuan, a 9% year-on-year increase.
Tencent to restructure internal resources to adapt to the AI era
R&D expenditure was 27.28 billion yuan, a 35% year-on-year increase; capital expenditure was 52.78 billion yuan, a 176% year-on-year increase and a 65% quarter-on-quarter increase. Excluding prepayments for computing power procurement, free cash flow was 37.6 billion yuan. Tencent CEO Ma Huateng previously stated during the earnings call that the company will significantly increase computing power procurement at the infrastructure level, driving the conversion of applications and model usage into revenue. Tencent Group Senior Executive Vice President and CEO of Cloud and Smart Industries Tang Daosheng has stated that over 50% of the top 500 enterprises in China are already using WorkBuddy, with coverage reaching 60% among the top 100 enterprises.