China Mobile AI Revenue Soars 279% in Pivot from Telecom to Tech

Intelligent Computing Revenue Grows 279%, Driving Tech Pivot

China Mobile's 2025 earnings, released March 26, confirmed its transformation into a technology services provider, powered by explosive growth in artificial intelligence. The company's intelligent computing services revenue expanded by a remarkable 279% year-over-year. This surge established the segment as the firm's "first engine" of growth and pushed the combined revenue from computing and intelligent services to ¥180.6 billion, now accounting for 20.2% of its core business income. Further highlighting this shift, revenue from dedicated AI Data Centers (AIDC) grew 35.4%, significantly outpacing the 8.7% growth for its broader data center business. The company now operates an intelligent computing infrastructure with a total scale of 92.5 EFLOPS.

Traditional Telecom Slips 1.0% as User Growth Plateaus

While its AI division thrives, China Mobile's traditional communication services faced headwinds, with revenue slipping 1.0% to ¥714.9 billion. This segment, long the company's foundation, is now in a phase of managed decline as growth drivers shift. The total mobile customer base remained immense at 1.005 billion users, but revenue from core wireless internet services fell from ¥385.9 billion to ¥369.1 billion. A bright spot in the traditional business was broadband, where revenue increased 7.1% on the back of a growing 329 million customer base. This divergence underscores the strategic imperative behind the company's pivot, as profitable growth is now clearly located in its new technology ventures rather than its legacy subscriber base.

Shareholder Payout Hits 75% After Capex Reduction

Despite a minor 0.9% dip in net profit to ¥137.1 billion, which management attributed to a one-time tax policy change, China Mobile demonstrated strong financial discipline and a commitment to shareholder returns. The company reduced its capital expenditure by 8% to ¥150.9 billion, helping maintain a healthy free cash flow of ¥82 billion. This financial prudence enabled a significant increase in shareholder rewards, with the full-year dividend payout ratio reaching 75%. Management has guided for this ratio to see a "stable with increase" trend in 2026, signaling confidence that the high-growth AI business can more than compensate for the stagnation in its legacy telecom operations.