Tencent Holdings seeks lofty growth in the global cloud computing space, led mainly by brisk offshore demand for Chinese-developed artificial intelligence (AI) models. Tencent Cloud international expansion constitutes one of the main strategic pillars of the company's most historic competitive development against multinational behemoths like Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, and Google.
Overseas cloud businesses have emerged as the company's rapidly-growing segment, according to Tencent's senior executive vice-president, Dowson Tong Tao-sang, and CEO of its Cloud and Smart Industries Group (CSIG). "Our cloud business has grown by high double digits for the last few years, and that's particularly outside mainland China," Tong told this reporter in a recent interview.
AI at the Core of Tencent's Cloud Strategy
The Tencent Cloud international expansion is led by the global adoption of AI. "There's huge potential for transferring Chinese open-source models of AI to overseas customers," noted Tong, while emphasizing that AI-based applications are growing at a very fast pace.
Earlier this year, Tencent also refocused its AI portfolio by shifting a few of its apps like QQ Browser, Sogou Pinyin, and learning aide Ima under the CSIG banner. Tong observed that "almost all applications can be improved by AI or even redesigned around AI." This realignment also means Tencent Cloud is always at the heart of the company's AI-powered innovations.
Asia-Pacific and Europe Areas of Focus
The Asia-Pacific has proven Tencent Cloud's fastest-growing market, and Tencent will be increasing investments there. Europe also showed what Tong described as "very good progress," and it is another prime target for Tencent's growth abroad.
The firm is currently focusing on areas where companies like to keep large language models (LLMs) on premises. Tencent thinks that it has some valuable experience it can bring by utilizing open-source models and its history of implementation of AI products.
Competing in the Global Cloud Market
Tencent Cloud faces intense competition from giants like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud. Those firms only dominate more than half of the world's cloud infrastructure services. But Tong pointed out that many of those rivals aren't focused on consumer-facing applications of AI—save for Google—which gives Tencent an opportunity to make a unique offer.
Locally, Tencent was China's third-largest provider of public cloud-based AI in 2024, after Alibaba Cloud and Baidu, as per IDC. Tencent's export of clouds internationally has led the company to target growth outside China.
Greater Internet Visibility
Initially rolled out as a platform for internet service delivery, Tencent Cloud has since expanded into other sectors like finance, retail, and Web3. The action is typical of the company's trend of utilizing AI in various sectors.
"Tencent Cloud has come out of gaming and video services," Tong stated. "Now we use AI to address pain points in areas such as finance and enterprise productivity."
Artificial Intelligence Lifts Business Performance
Tencent’s financial results underscore the importance of its AI strategy. In the second quarter of 2025, the company reported revenue of 184.5 billion yuan, a 15% increase year-on-year. Net profit also rose 16% to 56 billion yuan. The company credited AI integration for both higher sales and profitability.
Tencent's fintech and business services segment, including cloud, saw revenues rise by 10%, year over year. "We invested in and also benefited from using AI," stated Tencent in its report.
Looking Ahead
To fuel foreign cloud expansion, Tencent has also spent heavily in compute power and has purchased high-end chips from foreign and local suppliers. Tong also confirmed that there are "adequate resources" for handling increasing demand for foreign AI workloads.
With strong financial growth, a diversified lineup of AI products, and growing international markets, Tencent Cloud is emerging as a significant player in the international cloud battle. Although AWS, Microsoft, and Google maintain commanding positions, Tencent's emphasis on AI-driven instruments and customer applications can provide it a competitive edge in rapidly emerging markets.
Tencent Cloud international expansion is one of the company's priorities for the meantime as it operates in the fast-paced world cloud market.
