Tencent partners SEPC and GDAI to strengthen India’s AVGC ecosystem and gaming talent pipeline

Tech giant Tencent has announced a multi-year partnership to support India’s Orange Economy, pledging over Rs 100 million in resources and programs. The initiative will focus on strengthening the country’s Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, and Comics (AVGC) sector through talent development, startup support, and ecosystem building. Tencent signed a three-year MoU with the Services Export Promotion Council (SEPC) to advance India’s AVGC ecosystem and align with the national ambition of training two million skilled professionals in the AVGC-XR sector by 2030. A second MoU was signed with the Game Developers Association of India (GDAI) to strengthen India’s gaming talent pipeline through grassroots developer engagement, mentorship, and skilling initiatives.The partnership will introduce structured programs such as:Danny Marti, Tencent’s Head of Public Policy and Global Affairs, said the company aims to combine India’s creative strengths with Tencent’s expertise to build globally competitive talent and studios.Dr. Abhay Sinha, director general of SEPC, highlighted the AVGC sector’s role in driving India’s services exports. Shruti Verma, CEO of GDAI, emphasized that building strong grassroots talent pipelines will be key to positioning India as a global hub for game development and interactive entertainment.According to Niko Partners, India is the fastest-growing gaming market in Asia & MENA, projected to reach $1.5 billion in player spending by 2028 and 724 million gamers by 2029. Tencent’s collaborations aim to harness this momentum and help India’s AVGC sector scale globally.Beyond the MoUs, Tencent plans to explore partnerships with local institutions for internships, professional exposure, and knowledge exchange. The company also intends to bring global gaming titles like Honor of Kings to Indian players, contributing to the growth of esports and content creator communities.