# Tencent's Shunyu Yao says AI moats lie in products, not models

> Original title: 腾讯姚顺雨谈“AI 模型公司护城河”：更多存在于产品层，而不是模型层

- Source: IThome · AI
- Published: 2026-11-08T12:15:55.000Z
- Bad Influence: https://badinfluence.news/items/ksdatfnc4cadzc8y09y0ss6dw
- Original: https://www.ithome.com/1/023/991.htm

## Summary

Tencent chief AI scientist Shunyu Yao says AI companies' competitive moats lie more in products than in models. He argues that an AI product knowing a user's schedule, relationships and activities, as WeChat could, is hard to replace even if a rival model is smarter. Yao made the remarks at the 2026 Future Science Prize event, where Zhang Yaqin raised the question of what model companies' moats are.