Tencent is testing an AI assistant named Xiaowei within WeChat in China, currently in limited internal testing with selected users.

Xiaowei supports text and voice interactions and can trigger tasks through WeChat's mini-programs, leveraging Weixin’s own large language model with queries routed to DeepSeek.

Tencent shares fell about 1.64% during trading on Monday in response to the development.

The Xiaowei news follows a June report that sparked a stock surge of up to 10.5%, marking Tencent’s largest single-day gain since early 2021.

The move is part of Tencent’s effort to close the AI innovation gap with domestic rivals ByteDance and Alibaba, which are advancing AI and large language model capabilities.

There is no disclosed timeline for expanding Xiaowei beyond the current trial phase, and no full launch date announced.

The move reflects a wider industry trend of integrating capable AI into super apps to retain users, with Ant Group testing an AI agent in Alipay for tasks like ride bookings and takeout orders.

Regulatory risk looms as China’s AI governance framework requires registration of generative AI products before public release, potentially delaying full rollout if regulators impose constraints.

The success of the rollout hinges on user acceptance of an agent that can perform tasks and on the reliability of Tencent’s AI models for sensitive tasks like payments.

This initiative fits Tencent’s broader push to develop task-performing AI agents in China’s fast-evolving AI market.

Industry observers say China’s tech giants are investing in autonomous AI agents to boost user engagement and platform stickiness beyond simple information delivery.

WeChat’s 1.4 billion user base gives Tencent a major reach advantage for testing and potential adoption if Xiaowei proves reliable for payments and personal services.