TOPIC

/ company

WeChat

Released by Chinese web giant Tencent in 2011, WeChat is one of the largest messaging apps in the world, with more than 1 billion monthly active users, primarily in China. Originally confined to text messaging, WeChat has grown into an app platform, with gaming, payment, and social networking functions.

Chairman / President

Ma Huateng

CEO / Managing Director

Ma Huateng

CFO / Finance Director

John Lo

Industry

Social media

Website

wechat.com

Headquarters address

Tencent Binhai Towers, No. 33 Haitian Second Road,Nanshan District, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China

Stock Code

SEHK:2011

Year founded

2011

Diners tuck into “phad kaphrao” at Phed Mark, a Bangkok kitchen with a pop-up feel. Photo: Aidan Jones

Thailand

How RedNote, WeChat are reviving Thailand’s Chinese tourism market

Thai businesses are asking online experts to help reel in young big spenders who prize authenticity over heavily advertised content.

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US-China relations

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Financial crime

Hot tips, cold reality: China targets online stock scams luring novice investors

17 Apr 2026 - 6:42PM

TikTok

From ‘probing minds’ to verified account: how Musk’s stance on TikTok shifted

The billionaire’s surprising return to TikTok reveals his evolving tech diplomacy, with his account quickly gaining 120,000 followers.

15 Apr 2026 - 9:00PM

Elon Musk’s journey with TikTok has been anything but straightforward. Photo: Reuters

Artificial intelligence

Tencent moves to rein in AI content flood on WeChat with stricter rules

Updated guidelines target mass-produced and AI-rewritten posts, reflecting growing concern over the spread of low-effort content.

10 Apr 2026 - 9:31PM

Artificial intelligence

Tencent expands OpenClaw suite with enterprise tool amid China’s ‘lobster’ craze

ClawPro tool promises quick AI agent deployment, giving enterprises control over models, tokens and security.

3 Apr 2026 - 8:00PM

Hong Kong transport

40,000 taxi drivers sign up for e-payment systems as new rules come into force

Widespread coverage is good news ahead of coming holiday for mainland visitors who have solely been using e-wallets for years.

3 Apr 2026 - 11:04AMvideocam

Hong Kong mandated that taxi drivers provide at least two digital payment options from April 1. Photo: Jelly Tse

Artificial intelligence

Tencent adds ClawBot plug-in to WeChat amid OpenClaw boom and privacy warnings

With over 1 billion users, WeChat becomes Tencent’s biggest OpenClaw campaign, bringing into focus opportunity and regulatory caution.

23 Mar 2026 - 10:30PM

US-China relations

Chinese social media is awash with criticisms of the US. Can it go too far?

Online responses range from sarcastic variants on Beijing’s official line to ‘armchair generals’ telling Tehran how best to fight America.

22 Mar 2026 - 8:00PMvideocam

Apple

Apple reduces App Store commissions in China, to applause from Tencent, NetEase

Move has ‘long-term constructive significance for the overall prosperity of China’s mobile app ecosystem’, gaming company NetEase says.

13 Mar 2026 - 3:02PM

People look at Apple phones in a store in the Huangpu district of Shanghai on January 20, 2026. Photo: AFP

Artificial intelligence

China fines firms for fake ChatGPT and DeepSeek services

The two cases are among five examples made public by SAMR as it steps up efforts to fight unfair competition in China’s AI industry.

6 Feb 2026 - 10:06PM

Several companies have been fined for posing as DeepSeek and OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Photo: EPA

Artificial intelligence

When context is everything, AI models still struggle in the real world: Tencent

Despite rapid advances, today’s top AI models are still “brittle” in messy, real-world environments, according to new Tencent research.

4 Feb 2026 - 7:01PM

Tencent

Tencent’s giveaway campaign for AI chatbot Yuanbao blocked – by WeChat

Units clash as super app blocks links from AI chatbot’s US$144 million promotion for ‘impacting user experience and causing harassment’.

4 Feb 2026 - 2:27PM

Artificial intelligence

Red packet rumble: will Tencent’s cash giveaway work again in crowded AI market?

Analysts say strong competition from ByteDance, DeepSeek, Ant Group and Alibaba may prevent Tencent’s Yuanbao from repeating WeChat glory.

3 Feb 2026 - 12:36AM

Tencent’s Yuanbao has launched a campaign that gives out cash through digital red packets. Photo: Shutterstock

Robotics

Chinese tech giants Tencent and Baidu join fight for Spring Festival spotlight

The two companies launch digital red packet campaigns following tie-up moves by ByteDance and Alibaba with CCTV’s Spring Festival Gala.

26 Jan 2026 - 6:00PM

The Spring Festival Gala has become one of the most important promotional platforms for tech giants. Photo: Handout

Tencent

Tencent crackdown on third-party WeChat backup tools sparks privacy debate

WeChat offers its own storage management feature, but some use third-party services for more functionality.

23 Jan 2026 - 6:00PM

Tencent

Uber’s WeChat tie-up pays off as demand from Chinese tourists rises overseas

Uber will offer a discount of at least 40 per cent during Lunar New Year for new mainland users who join via its WeChat mini-program.

16 Jan 2026 - 3:45PM

Consumer protection in Hong Kong

Mapping issues in 7 of 8 power bank rental platforms tested by Hong Kong watchdog

Consumer Council also finds significant variance in rental fees across different stations within the same platform.

15 Jan 2026 - 3:48PM

Two power bank rental machines at the North Point ferry pier. Photo: Jelly Tse

Robotics

Chinese robot vacuum maker Dreame gives staff gifts of gold, trip to Antarctica

Dreame’s surprise largesse reflects its robust business growth in 2025, as it remains one of the world’s top robot vacuum cleaner brands.

29 Dec 2025 - 7:32PM

Artificial intelligence

ByteDance, other major Chinese tech firms lead local consumer AI market: report

ByteDance-owned Doubao remains the country’s top consumer AI app, as DeepSeek’s namesake chatbot takes the No 2 spot.

24 Dec 2025 - 8:31PM

Mainland China

Why retailers are beating a hasty retreat from mainland China

Hong Kong retailer Mannings will cease online operations from December 26 and close its physical stores after January 15.

19 Dec 2025 - 3:30PM

Mannings is one of Hong Kong’s largest health and beauty retailers. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Artificial intelligence

Alipay and Rokid open up AI payment function on smart glasses to developers

The function has been made available to participants in the Rokid Spatial Joy 25 Global AR and AI Developer Competition.

15 Dec 2025 - 11:49AM

Alipay and AI glasses maker Rokid have teamed up to debut a smart glasses AI pay solution on the Rokid Lingzhu AI development platform. Photo: Sina

Nepal

‘Like a market’: Chinese marriage brokers hunt for brides in Nepal

China’s bachelor crisis meets Nepal’s poverty in a trade that blurs the lines between arranged marriage and coercion.

24 Feb 2026 - 12:54PMvideocam

China’s private sector

ByteDance’s agentic AI smartphone dials up a digital backlash by China’s top apps

ByteDance’s new AI smartphone has run into resistance, as major Chinese platforms move to block its features citing fairness and security.

7 Dec 2025 - 10:00AM

Tencent

Elon Musk reiterates aim to transform X into a ‘WeChat++’ super app

Users ‘live their life on WeChat in China’ and there is no equivalent app elsewhere in the world, the entrepreneur says.

3 Dec 2025 - 6:00PM

Hong Kong’s Tai Po fire tragedy

‘Feeling powerless’: Hong Kong internet users grieve over Tai Po blaze

As death toll rises, residents offer condolences to victims and call for support and blood donations.

27 Nov 2025 - 5:08PM

The Tai Po blaze is the deadliest fire in seven decades. Photo: Elson Li

Tencent

Alibaba bets on ‘everything app’ Qwen to define AI era for global consumers

Qwen has the potential to become super-app, the same way Tencent’s WeChat defined the mobile internet age, analysts say.

19 Nov 2025 - 1:00AMvideocam

Artificial intelligence

China’s tech giants to lead AI growth despite chip challenge: JPMorgan

The likes of Tencent and Alibaba are expected to focus on integrating AI features into their ‘killer apps’, benefiting downstream sectors.

14 Nov 2025 - 6:00PMvideocam

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