Overview
Tencent Yuanbao is an AI conversation assistant launched by Tencent, based on the Tencent Hunyuan large model, focusing on practicality and ease of use. It has a natural connection with the WeChat and QQ ecosystems, performing steadily in Chinese conversations, content creation, and information search, making it an underrated product among domestic AI assistants.
Continuous model base upgrades: On 2026/04/24, Tencent released and open-sourced Hunyuan Hy3-preview (a hybrid expert model combining fast and slow thinking, with 295B total parameters and 21B activated parameters, supporting up to 256K context), the first major achievement since former OpenAI researcher Yao Shunyu led basic research. On 2026/07/06, the official version of Hunyuan Hy3 was released and open-sourced — compared to the April preview version, it further improved post-training compute, data quality, and diversity, with Coding and Agent capabilities improved by 20-30%; Yuanbao immediately integrated it, and simultaneously launched Agent capabilities, allowing users to input requests in daily conversations for Yuanbao to directly execute complex tasks, completely free. Performance verification: As of WAIC 2026 (07/17), total API calls for Hy3 within a week of launch surged over 68 times compared to the previous generation Hy2, topping the OpenRouter global large model call volume leaderboard, one of the most impressive growth cases for domestic large models recently. The official Hy3 version was also integrated into multiple Tencent product lines such as WorkBuddy, CodeBuddy, Marvis, and ima, with APIs available on Tencent Cloud TokenHub.
On 2026/08/28, Yuanbao adopted Hunyuan Hy4 preview and launched an expert mode, strengthening handling of complex problems such as multi-constraint decisions and long-chain agent tasks. Hy4 preview is Hunyuan's latest productivity-oriented preview, with 770B total parameters and a 1M context window, built for demanding office and study scenarios. On 2026/09/22, Hy Image 3.5 preview was rolled out to all users for free, targeting text rendering and layout, realism and stylization, and editing consistency, supporting multi-turn refinement while preserving the key features of people and products from the original image, live on mobile, desktop and web. On 2026/09/25, the Yuanbao HarmonyOS edition launched as a natively adapted first release rather than a WebView wrapper, shipping with Hunyuan Hy4 preview and a switchable expert mode, opening AI writing, voice calls, precise image recognition, photo translation and document reading across 36 formats, and tapping WeChat official account and Channels content as sources.
As of now, Tencent Yuanbao remains completely free for individual users (no membership paid services have been introduced), contrasting with Doubao's three-tier paid professional version priced at 68-500 yuan. Yuanbao persists with a differentiation strategy relying on WeChat/Public Account/Video Account ecosystem integration plus free Agent capabilities.
Key Features
- Hunyuan Hy4 preview + Expert Mode (New): Adopted on 2026/08/28, strengthening handling of complex problems such as multi-constraint decisions and long-chain agent tasks; Hy4 preview is Hunyuan's latest productivity-oriented preview, with 770B total parameters and a 1M context window, built for demanding office and study scenarios
- Hy Image 3.5 preview (New): Released 2026/09/22 and opened to all users for free; targets text rendering and layout, realism and stylization, and editing consistency, supporting multi-turn refinement while preserving the key features of people and products from the original image, live on mobile, desktop and web
- HarmonyOS Edition (New): Arrived on the HarmonyOS app market on 2026/09/25 as a natively adapted first release rather than a WebView wrapper, shipping with Hunyuan Hy4 preview and a switchable expert mode, opening AI writing, voice calls, precise image recognition, photo translation and document reading across 36 formats, and tapping WeChat official account and Channels content as sources
- Hy3 Official Version + Free Agent Capabilities: Released on 2026/07/06, Coding/Agent capabilities improved by 20-30% compared to preview; Yuanbao immediately integrated and launched free Agent capabilities simultaneously, with call volume surging 68 times in the first week to top the OpenRouter global leaderboard
- Hunyuan 3.0 / Hy3-preview Base: 295B MoE fast and slow thinking fusion architecture (Hy3-preview), further upgraded to Hunyuan 3.0 on 2026/06/21, with significant improvements in multimodal understanding and tool invocation
- Intelligent Conversation: High-quality Chinese conversations based on the Hunyuan large model, with outstanding intent understanding and deep search capabilities for complex questions
- Web Search: Real-time search to obtain the latest information, with answers including source citations
- Document Analysis: Upload documents for intelligent Q&A and summarization
- Image Understanding: Recognize and understand image content
- Deep Integration with WeChat Ecosystem: Linked with ecosystem features such as WeChat Public Account summaries, Video Accounts, and in-text translation, accessible via QR code login
- Completely Free: All features for individual users are free to use with no limits, and no membership paid services have been introduced yet
Use Cases
- Daily Chinese Q&A and knowledge queries
- Writing and content creation assistance
- Quick reading and understanding of documents and materials
- Web search for the latest information, deep search for research tasks
- Free AI assistant for WeChat/QQ ecosystem users
- Complex multi-constraint decisions and long-chain agent tasks via expert mode
- Free image generation and precise image editing
Pros
- Completely free: All features for individual users at zero cost, Agent capabilities, expert mode and Hy Image 3.5 preview also free, no paid subscription like Doubao yet
- Fast model base iteration: Hy3-preview → Hunyuan 3.0 → Hy3 official version → Hy4 preview, multiple major upgrades within half a year
- Strong search capabilities: High-quality web search results, deep search experience comparable to top-tier products
- Good Chinese performance: Optimized for Chinese scenarios, excellent high-EQ casual conversation interaction experience
- Low usage barrier: Accessible via WeChat QR code login
- Stable and reliable: Backed by Tencent, a major company, with stable service and deep linkage with WeChat/Public Account/Video Account ecosystem
- Broad platform coverage: Mobile, desktop, web and a natively adapted HarmonyOS edition
Pricing
Tencent Yuanbao is currently completely free for individual users, with all core features (intelligent Q&A, document processing, AI creation, Public Account summaries, in-text translation, Agent capabilities, expert mode, Hy Image 3.5 preview image generation, etc.) available without limits, and no membership paid services have been introduced yet. APIs are provided through the Tencent Hunyuan large model open platform and Tencent Cloud TokenHub, billed by token. Compared to Doubao's three-tier paid professional version priced at 68-500 yuan launched on 2026/06/24, Yuanbao still adheres to a free strategy, with a differentiated approach of deep integration with the WeChat ecosystem plus free Agent capabilities.
Summary
Tencent Yuanbao is an 'underrated domestic AI assistant' — completely free, stable, with strong search capabilities, and its model base continues to strengthen with iterations from Hunyuan Hy3-preview to 3.0 to the official Hy3 version, then to Hunyuan Hy4 preview adopted on 2026/08/28 alongside an expert mode. The free Agent capabilities launched on 2026/07/06 are a key differentiator — users can have Yuanbao directly execute complex tasks with a single sentence, at no charge, with call volume surging 68 times in the first week to top the OpenRouter global leaderboard, validating the feasibility of this path with real data. The product line has also broadened: Hy Image 3.5 preview opened to all users for free on 2026/09/22, and a natively adapted HarmonyOS edition arrived on 2026/09/25 with Hy4 preview and a switchable expert mode. As a daily free AI tool, the experience is good enough, especially suitable for users deeply embedded in the WeChat ecosystem. Compared to Doubao's shift toward paid subscriptions, Yuanbao remains the preferred choice for 'free users' in the short term.
Version History
- Yuanbao Search opens to third parties via Skill, MCP and API at 14 to 26 yuan per thousand calls (2026-10-25): Tencent opened Yuanbao Search to outside developers on October 25, with Skill, MCP and API access priced between 14 and 26 yuan per thousand calls. A third-party test across 9 categories and 31 queries found its strengths in authoritative sources, freshness and returning full page text; one internal product cut average search calls per task from 8 to 5 after switching.
- Yuanbao HarmonyOS edition launches with Hy4 preview (2026-09-25): Tencent Yuanbao's HarmonyOS edition arrived on the HarmonyOS app market as a natively adapted first release rather than a WebView wrapper. It ships with Hunyuan Hy4 preview and a switchable expert mode, opening AI writing, voice calls, precise image recognition, photo translation and document reading across 36 formats, and taps WeChat official account and Channels content as sources.
- Hy Image 3.5 preview rolled out to all users (2026-09-22): Tencent Hunyuan released Hy Image 3.5 preview and Yuanbao opened it to all users for free. The upgrade targets text rendering and layout, realism and stylization, and editing consistency, supporting multi-turn refinement while preserving the key features of people and products from the original image. During grayscale testing overall image-generation requests rose more than 50% and precise-editing scenarios such as portrait retouching rose 100%; the capability is live on mobile, desktop and web.
- Yuanbao adopts Hunyuan Hy4 preview with an expert mode (2026-08-28): Yuanbao adopted Hunyuan Hy4 preview and launched an expert mode, strengthening handling of complex problems such as multi-constraint decisions and long-chain agent tasks. Hy4 preview is Hunyuan's latest productivity-oriented preview, with 770B total parameters and a 1M context window, built for demanding office and study scenarios.
- Hy3 call volume tops OpenRouter global leaderboard (2026-07-17): At WAIC 2026, Tencent disclosed: Hy3's total call volume within a week of launch increased over 68 times compared to the previous generation Hy2, topping the OpenRouter global large model call volume leaderboard, validating the effectiveness of Agent capability deployment
- Hunyuan Hy3 Official Version + Yuanbao Free Agent (2026-07-06): Hy3 official version released and open-sourced, Coding/Agent capabilities improved by 20-30% compared to preview; Yuanbao simultaneously launched free Agent capabilities; also integrated into WorkBuddy/CodeBuddy/Marvis/ima, APIs available on Tencent Cloud TokenHub
- Hunyuan Large Model 3.0 (2026-06-21): Released at the Global Digital Ecosystem Conference, with major upgrades in multimodal understanding, tool invocation, and industry applications, already used in multiple Tencent products including Yuanbao
- Hunyuan Hy3-preview integrated into Yuanbao (2026-04-28): Hy3-preview (295B MoE, fast and slow thinking fusion) led by former OpenAI researcher Yao Shunyu fully integrated into the Yuanbao App, with significant improvements in intent understanding, text creation, and deep search capabilities