The Chinese web giant Tencent is one of the biggest companies in tech thanks to its popular messaging and gaming services, and yet you'd hardly know it outside of China. But that may not be for long: Tencent recently began expanding into new countries, and it's even made some investments in American companies to start making a dent in the US. In an in-depth profile of Tencent and its billionaire CEO, Fast Company explains how it's attempting to go global and how cultural differences — such as a distaste for copying — as well as ties to China's government could stand in its way. "Will Tencent join the likes of Amazon, Google, Facebook, and Twitter?" one startup founder backed by Tencent reportedly tells Fast Co. "They already are in that league. The rest of the world just doesn't know it."
Inside Tencent: the Chinese tech giant that’s trying to go global
is The Verge’s executive editor. He has covered tech, policy, and online creators for over a decade.
Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.
Most Popular
Most Popular
- Xbox overhauls its PC, web, and cloud apps with a faster design
- Anker’s new window-mounted camera monitors the outside of your home from within it
- I’ve reviewed almost every Android foldable this year — here’s how the iPhone Duo compares
- After printing 40,000 whistles, this is the 3D printer I’d buy
- The Enough Phone is made by and for people fed up with big screens
