WeChat has initiated testing of Xiaowei as Tencent prepares for an AI launch in the third quarter.

      WeChat is an exceptional app that already encompasses nearly every functionality. Users in China can message, make payments, book services, shop, and hail taxis all within the app, which makes Tencent’s upcoming move particularly intriguing: instead of creating a separate chatbot and competing for downloads, it is integrating an AI assistant directly into the app that a billion people access daily. Tencent has started testing this assistant, named Xiaowei, with a limited group of users.

      As stated by WeChat, this tool allows users to interact via text or voice and accomplish tasks by utilizing the app’s extensive collection of mini-programs, which are lightweight applications that operate within WeChat.

      In practice, Xiaowei serves as a command interface: you can request it to initiate a call, draft a message, or navigate to a service, and it handles the menu navigation for you. It primarily utilizes Weixin’s large language model, with DeepSeek being tapped for certain queries.

      Currently, the test is limited, and Tencent has positioned it as a precursor to a broader launch. The company aims for a public release in the third quarter, with the longer-term goal of transforming WeChat into a kind of concierge capable of managing payments, services, and financial tasks through spoken or typed commands. Investors reacted positively to this development, leading to a rise in Tencent's stock as they anticipate an AI agent integrated within the super app.

      This isn't Tencent's first initiative to incorporate AI into WeChat. Earlier this year, it introduced Yuanbao, a standalone chatbot that users could add as a contact and message directly.

      Xiaowei represents a more ambitious concept: rather than being a chatbot you converse with, it acts as a layer that operates throughout the app on your behalf. This distinction lies in the difference between asking an assistant a question and requesting it to perform a task.

      The strategy is one we've observed evolving among China's major platforms, ranging from AI shopping assistants at Alibaba and Meituan to Tencent’s own enterprise agent platform. The prevailing assumption is that the agent will be a feature of an app that users already utilize, rather than a destination that requires convincing them to visit. Few companies are better positioned to explore this than the one that owns WeChat.

      The broad reach of WeChat strengthens this argument. With approximately 1.4 billion users, it boasts an audience that many AI companies can only dream of, and embedding the assistant within the app, as opposed to launching it separately, enables Tencent to bypass the priciest segment of the business, which involves attracting users.

      The upcoming quarter's test will determine if these users are interested in having an agent operate on their behalf, and whether Tencent’s models can be trusted for payments and personal tasks.