Tencent’s Revenue Miss Heightens Pressure for Faster AI Payoff

Tencent Holdings Ltd. reported its slowest revenue growth in six quarters, underscoring the urgency around its costly AI pivot while core businesses like games and advertising show signs of age.

Sales for the three months ended March climbed 9% to 196.5 billion yuan ($28.9 billion), after the WeChat operator garnered weaker domestic game sales, while net income rose to 58.1 billion yuan, in line with estimates. The underwhelming top-line figure was partially due to the later timing of this year’s Lunar New Year holiday, a traditional catalyst for online entertainment spending.