CNBC AI News, August 19th – Once considered a relic of the early internet, Meitu, a company synonymous with image editing, is experiencing a resurgence powered by artificial intelligence. The stock has surged nearly five-fold in the past year, signaling a renewed investor interest.
The company’s latest earnings report reveals substantial growth. For the first half of 2025, Meitu reported a 12.3% year-over-year increase in total revenue, reaching RMB 1.8 billion. Net profit soared by 30.8% to nearly RMB 400 million, while adjusted net profit jumped 71.3% to RMB 470 million.
Notably, Meitu’s profits for the first half of the year have already surpassed its entire 2023 earnings (RMB 370 million). This impressive growth is largely attributed to the success of AI-driven paid subscriptions.
Over the past year, Meitu has maintained a relatively low profile, foregoing events like the Image Festival and the World Artificial Intelligence Conference.
Following the earnings release on August 18th, Meitu’s founder, chairman, and CEO, Wu Xinhong, told media that a sense of urgency has driven the company to operate like a startup, focusing its resources on core areas.
He stated: “The window of opportunity for generative AI may be short-lived. Our primary focus now is whether we can seize this opportunity within, say, two years.”
Image processing is rapidly emerging as one of the first AI applications to achieve commercial success, with a proliferation of new AI-powered imaging apps. Major tech companies are also aggressively entering this space.
However, Wu Xinhong believes Meitu faces a greater threat from nimble startups than established tech giants. He considers these startups to be more agile and better positioned to capitalize on emerging opportunities. Meitu, he says, is striving to emulate the startup mentality.
Regarding Meitu’s RMB 1.8 billion investment partnership with Alibaba, announced earlier this year, Wu Xinhong explained: “Meitu lacks the resources for large-scale investment in foundation models. We need a strategic partner to ensure we remain competitive in model capabilities. We chose Alibaba because its Tongyi Qianwen model is open source, allowing for seamless integration with Meitu’s various vertical models and business scenarios.”
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