On November 12, in response to online rumors that "Tencent is laying off 50% of its staff," Zhang Jun, Tencent's public relations director, said the claim was completely untrue. During Tencent's 28th anniversary Linktime livestream, management did express its determination to accelerate organizational change, but this adjustment is not the previous "cost reduction and efficiency improvement" effort focused mainly on cutting costs. Instead, it is a proactive organizational transformation for the AI era, with the core goals of improving efficiency and sparking innovation.
Zhang Jun said Tencent hopes frontline teams will more actively explore new businesses and new value, while middle management needs to be further flattened and the organization made more agile. In terms of resource allocation, Tencent proposed that about 50% of its workforce be devoted to existing core businesses, using efficiency gains to strengthen its foundation; the other roughly 50% will focus on the AI wave, exploring AI Native directions and opening up new room for growth.
This statement was misinterpreted by outsiders as a layoff ratio. Tencent stressed that the arrangement is a reallocation of organizational resources for the AI era, not a 50% layoff. The response also reflects Tencent's attempt to accelerate efficiency improvements in core businesses and exploration of new AI businesses through adjustments to its organizational structure and resource allocation.
