Tencent has been designated a Chinese military company by the US Department of Defense, which the conglomerate calls a 'misunderstanding'

Tencent, one of the world's largest videogame publishers, is also a Chinese military company, the US Department of Defense claims. Which has come as something of a surprise to the conglomerate, which has called the designation a "misunderstanding".

The DoD's list of Chinese military companies is updated annually, and Tencent is among the new batch of additions for 2025. While this designation does not come with any sanctions, it demonstrably serves as a warning to US companies not to invest, and as a result Tencent's stock has taken a 7% hit in Hong Kong, as noted by Bloomberg's report.

Chinese military companies are those either directly controlled by the People's Liberation Army or those providing it with support, but it's not clear what relationship the DoD believes Tencent has with the Chinese military. It does, however, have a close relationship with the Chinese Communist Party and has an in-house CCP branch—though this is not unusual in China, and indeed for any companies with multiple CCP members it's mandatory.

It's worth noting that the US military has also had a long relationship with the videogame industry. Indeed, the US Army is a videogame developer and publisher, releasing several games in the America's Army FPS series since 2002. And in 2021 Microsoft signed a $22 billion deal to provide the US Army with AR headsets, designed to improve "situational awareness, target engagement, and informed decision-making". Sounds like a military company to me.

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Fraser is the UK online editor and has actually met The Internet in person. With over a decade of experience, he's been around the block a few times, serving as a freelancer, news editor and prolific reviewer. Strategy games have been a 30-year-long obsession, from tiny RTSs to sprawling political sims, and he never turns down the chance to rave about Total War or Crusader Kings. He's also been known to set up shop in the latest MMO and likes to wind down with an endlessly deep, systemic RPG. These days, when he's not editing, he can usually be found writing features that are 1,000 words too long or talking about his dog.