Tencent taps AI technology amid first annual revenue drop

Chinese gaming giant says will not rush own ChatGPT-style chatbot

Attendees visit Tencent's booth at the 2022 China International Fair for Trade in Services in Beijing. The company's domestic game revenue decreased 6% for 2022. © Reuters

CISSY ZHOU, Nikkei staff writer

March 22, 2023 18:19 JST

Updated on March 23, 2023 00:16 JST

HONG KONG -- Chinese tech giant Tencent Holdings said Wednesday that artificial intelligence technology could be a "growth multiplier" for the company as it reported its first-ever annual revenue decline.

As the Microsoft-backed ChatGPT takes the tech world by storm, Chinese search engine giant Baidu has unveiled Ernie Bot, its answer to the rival chatbot, with Tencent and other Chinese tech companies also announcing plans for similar services and AI-generated content.