Over $6 billion sale of Moonton Technology marks the end of ByteDance’s seven-year journey in gaming.

On March 20, after nearly two years of market rumors, the deal has finally been completed.

ByteDance and Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF)'s Savvy Games Group (hereinafter "Savvy") signed a final agreement to sell all equity of its gaming company Moonton for more than $6 billion.

This transaction marks a substantive end to ByteDance's contraction of its gaming business and reflects the internet giant's re-evaluation of resource allocation amid intensified competition in AI.

Industry insiders told Wallstreet News that ByteDance's decision to reclaim funds is closely related to current large-scale investment in the AI sector.

$6 Billion Deal Sealed

On March 20, Moonton's CEO Zhang Yunfan issued an internal letter to all employees, confirming the change of ownership. He stated in the letter that both parties have signed the agreement and will complete the delivery in the coming period.

After the transaction, Moonton will become Savvy's wholly-owned subsidiary, but its management structure will remain unchanged, headquarters will stay in Shanghai, and Zhang Yunfan will continue as CEO.

The internal letter also revealed employee arrangements: ByteDance will provide multiple incentive plans for Moonton employees, including accelerated vesting and distribution of previously granted long-term incentives, as well as new incentive schemes based on future performance. This arrangement is rare in large M&A deals, demonstrating consideration by the seller for team stability during asset divestment.

It is understood the formal negotiations began in the second half of 2025, and core terms reached consensus in early 2026.

Moonton being put on the "shelf" is not a recent development.

Back in November 2023, when ByteDance announced large-scale contraction of its gaming business, Moonton was rumored to be up for sale, with market quotes around $5 billion. The final deal exceeded $6 billion — about 50% premium over the $4 billion valuation when ByteDance acquired it in 2021.

For buyer Savvy, this transaction is a key step in its global gaming industry strategy.

Savvy was founded by the Saudi Public Investment Fund in 2021, as a core vehicle under Saudi Arabia’s "Vision 2030" for diversifying the economy and building a global esports and gaming industry hub. In recent years, Savvy has completed several major acquisitions, including the $4.9 billion purchase of Monopoly Go developer Scopely, and the consolidation of ESL, Faceit, and other esports tournament organizations.

Moonton’s core value lies in its deep roots in the Southeast Asian market.

Its flagship product "Mobile Legends: Bang Bang" (MLBB, known domestically as "决胜巅峰") has, since its launch in 2016, consistently ranked top-selling in Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, etc., and has established a mature esports tournament system around the product.

According to Sensor Tower, as of 2023, MLBB monthly active players exceeded 110 million, and total registered users surpassed 1.465 billion. Industry analysts believe the acquisition of Moonton helps Savvy fill gaps in its Asian market strategy.

Full Contraction of Gaming Business

The sale of Moonton is a landmark step in ByteDance's continued contraction of its gaming business.

Looking back the past seven years, ByteDance’s investment in gaming went from rapid expansion to gradual exit.

ByteDance’s exploration of gaming began with industry research in 2015, entering the market officially in 2018 — the launch of “Today's Games” module on Toutiao and the game center on Douyin, starting from light and mini-game distribution.

In 2019, ByteDance acquired Shanghai Mokun to form the 101 Studio, launching self-developed heavy games under the "Oasis Project," with teams expanding quickly from hundreds to thousands.

In 2021, the gaming publishing and production organizations were officially branded “Nuverse,” and in the same year Moonton was acquired for about $4 billion, along with acquisitions of Youai Interactive, etc., forming a gaming portfolio covering MOBA, anime, SLG and other genres.

At the time, ByteDance’s gaming business, leveraging Douyin and Toutiao’s traffic advantages plus a “self-development + acquisition” expansion strategy, was seen by the market as the company most likely to challenge Tencent’s dominance. In November 2021, after Liang Rubo became CEO, ByteDance was split into six business units, with gaming put on par with Douyin, showing the group’s strategic emphasis.

However, actual operation deviated from strategic expectations.

In the industry, ByteDance was never considered a mainstream major game developer. Observers point out ByteDance lacked stable products capable of long-term operation in gaming.

The signal for business contraction first appeared in 2022.

In June that year, ByteDance dissolved the Shanghai 101 Studio, marking the first major business adjustment. In November 2023, ByteDance announced a large-scale contraction of Nuverse, shut down many projects, and dissolved teams.

It is understood this contraction decision was made after prolonged discussions by business head Yan Shou and ByteDance CEO Liang Rubo.

Liang Rubo said internally that this move aimed to shift from the previous pursuit of "comprehensive scale" to investing energy and resources in a "more fundamental, more innovative, more imaginative direction."

In 2024, former Perfect World Games president Zhang Yunfan took over ByteDance’s gaming business, seeking a new rhythm amid contraction. Zhang Yunfan is a veteran in the industry, joining NetEase in 2003, later helping found platforms such as YY and NGA, and becoming Perfect World COO and president in 2015.

But the ultimate sale of Moonton shows ByteDance chose a more thorough adjustment — divesting mature assets, focusing resources on more strategically prioritized sectors.

Based on past performance, the industry sees ByteDance’s sale of Moonton not as an accident, but a sign of business focus.

Resources Reserved for AI

The sale of Moonton reflects ByteDance's continuous increase and reallocation of resources to the AI sector.

In January 2026, Liang Rubo clarified the annual priority at the company-wide meeting as "Doubao/Dola Assistant apps." He said there are several important opportunities in the AI era, and the company needs to pursue the most crucial direction.

This statement comes as AI investment continues to increase, combined with rising chip prices, boosting overall expenses for ByteDance.

With costs rising, selling Moonton delivers a considerable investment return: the $6 billion deal far exceeds the $4 billion acquisition cost. This action sends a clear signal — ByteDance is concentrating its resources in AI.

According to market data, ByteDance’s investment in AI has started to bear fruit.

QuestMobile data shows Doubao's average monthly active users jumped from 99.8 million in Q1 2025 to 230 million in Q4, topping the industry for two consecutive quarters.

In overseas markets, ByteDance’s international AI assistant Dola’s daily active users have surpassed ten million. Liang Rubo stated at the all-staff meeting ByteDance’s foundational model strength is in China’s first-tier, and its image and video generation capabilities have entered the global top tier.

But competition is intensifying.

Since 2026, Tencent’s Yuanbao has remained in the industry top three since 2025, and announced a 1 billion RMB red envelope promotion for the Spring Festival; Alibaba’s Qianwen, leveraging ecosystem advantages, announced in January 2026 comprehensive integration with Taobao, Alipay, Gaode, etc., reaching over 100 million monthly active users within two months.

Facing such competition, resource concentration has become ByteDance’s strategic choice. The sale of Moonton signifies gaming has shifted from ByteDance’s “core business” to “divestible asset.”

But this doesn’t mean ByteDance is completely exiting gaming. According to previous public information, ByteDance still retains some game teams internally, focusing on UGC innovation. Future gaming strategy will emphasize synergy with Douyin and exploration of AI technology combined with games, rather than independent self-development expansion.

From $4 billion acquisition to $6 billion sale, Moonton existed in ByteDance’s portfolio for five years.

These five years mark ByteDance’s shift from gaming expansion to contraction, and are a microcosm of China’s internet industry transitioning from traffic-driven to technology-driven.

For Moonton, joining Savvy means clearer strategic positioning and more abundant resource support. Zhang Yunfan expressed confidence about the future in the internal letter: "I believe that through cooperation with Savvy, Moonton will usher in broader development opportunities and bring better gaming experiences to more global players."

For ByteDance, selling Moonton is a strategic reallocation of resources. With investment in AI continuing to grow, divesting non-core assets and concentrating resources in key sectors has become the company's practical choice.

Liang Rubo said at the beginning of the year the window for new industry opportunities is shortening. With this judgment, ByteDance's resource flow has become clear.

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