Tencent Holdings is quietly reallocating its venture capital bets away from legacy internet assets to double down on China’s highest-profile artificial intelligence champions.
While the tech giant’s sprawling portfolio spans mobile gaming, e-commerce and consumer goods globally, its AI strategy has rapidly accelerated.
Earlier this month, Tencent trimmed its long-held stake in Kuaishou Technology days after backing a US$3 billion round for Kuaishou’s AI video unit, Kling AI.
Tencent did not respond to a request for comment.
Here is a closer look at the other key players in Tencent’s AI portfolio.
Moonshot AI
Tencent was one of the earliest backers of Chinese unicorn Moonshot AI, developer of the recently released Kimi K3 model that sparked talk of another “DeepSeek moment”.
Moonshot is currently gearing up for a Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO) and is set to close its latest funding round at a US$30 billion valuation by early next month, the South China Morning Post reported last week.
DeepSeek
Tencent joined DeepSeek’s landmark US$7 billion Series A round in June, which valued the Hangzhou start-up at nearly US$60 billion, the SCMP reported. Tencent reportedly contributed 10 billion yuan (US$1.47 billion).
DeepSeek is now in talks for a new round at a roughly US$70 billion pre-investment valuation and is eyeing a domestic listing on Shanghai’s Star Market, the SCMP reported earlier this month, citing sources.
Manus
After Beijing blocked Meta Platforms’ US$2 billion acquisition of Manus operator Butterfly Effect in April, original backers have moved to buy back the general AI agent developer.
Tencent, which first invested in 2024, is now seeking to become its largest external shareholder, according to a person familiar with the matter. The Financial Times first reported Tencent’s plan earlier this month.
Zhipu AI and MiniMax
Some of Tencent’s early bets on AI model developers are paying off.
Tencent took part in Beijing-based Zhipu’s Series B4 funding round in 2024 with a 200 million yuan investment, while it retained a 1.58 per cent post-listing stake, according to the AI firm’s prospectus.
Tencent holds 2.58 per cent in MiniMax, which the tech giant has been backing since the Series A round, according to the Shanghai-based AI firm’s exchange filing.
Following their Hong Kong listings, Zhipu AI and MiniMax have logged massive stock rallies – up over 1,000 per cent and 130 per cent from their IPO prices, respectively, as of Monday.
Enflame
Tencent is the largest outside shareholder with a 20.26 per cent stake in AI chip start-up Shanghai Enflame Technology, which received regulatory approval last month for a Shanghai Star Market IPO.
Tencent is also Enflame’s primary client, accounting for 84 per cent of its 2025 revenue, according to the chip designer’s prospectus. Enflame has been dubbed one of the “four little dragons” in domestic AI chips.
Lightelligence
Tencent holds a 3.56 per cent stake in Shanghai-based Lightelligence, the first mainland Chinese photonics chipmaker to go public in Hong Kong. Since its April debut, the stock has surged nearly 170 per cent. -- SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
