Youku Media Signs AI Actors; Tencent Boosts AI Investment; SkyReels-V4 Leads Text-to-Video Rankings

Youku Media has announced the signing of two artificial intelligence (AI) digital actors, a move that quickly became a trending topic on social media. This development occurred as Tencent reported substantial annual investments in its AI business, and Kunlun Tech's SkyReels-V4 achieved the top position in a global text-to-video ranking.

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AI Developments Across Industries

On March 18, Youku Media confirmed via Weibo that it had signed two AI digital artists. The announcement generated significant online discussion, accumulating over 19.5 million views and topping Weibo's trending searches. Social media users noted resemblances between the AI actors and human celebrities, with one comment suggesting the female AI actor resembled Zhao Jinmai and Zhang Zifeng, and the male AI actor looked like Zhai Ziluo. This follows earlier reports indicating that major domestic long-form video platforms were exploring production models that integrate human actors with AI-driven supporting roles.

Exterior view of Tencent's modern corporate headquarters building.

Tencent's financial reports for the fourth quarter of 2025 and the full year revealed an annual investment of 79.2 billion yuan in its AI operations. The company highlighted the expanding scale of its AI applications and strong user engagement. Tencent Yuanbao, an AI application, surpassed 100 million monthly active users, while ima recorded over 13 million monthly active users. Additionally, AI features within QQ Browser have served more than 130 million users cumulatively. Pony Ma, Tencent's CEO, commented on the company's strategy, stating that both centralized and decentralized approaches are being pursued. Tencent has previously launched AI products such as WorkBuddy and QClaw, and introduced the "lobster" knowledge base and Skills on the AI workbench ima.

Feishu, a collaboration platform, announced a significant upgrade to its Aily intelligent agent platform on March 19. The update allows users to create their own AI agents with a single click. The Feishu OpenClaw official plugin is also undergoing continuous iteration, having integrated with AI companies including Volcengine and Yuejie Xingchen. This integration enables users to deploy exclusive OpenClaw functionalities within Feishu.

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Advancements in Text-to-Video Technology

Kunlun Tech's SkyReels-V4 model achieved the top spot in Artificial Analysis's global text-to-video ranking on March 19, surpassing competitors such as Veo 3.1 and Sora 2. The model incorporates two key updates: a comprehensive upgrade to its full-modal reinforcement learning system and the addition of keyframe and grid reference capabilities.

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Debunking Layoff Rumors

Recent online rumors concerning layoffs at NetEase and iFlytek have been officially refuted. NetEase stated that claims of using AI to lay off outsourced employees were false, attributing personnel changes to normal business adjustments and replacements. Similarly, iFlytek denied significant layoffs, and public security organs have administratively detained individuals responsible for fabricating information about the company's alleged layoffs.