Tencent joins the Linux Foundation as a platinum member

Chinese tech giant Tencent has announced it’s joined the Linux Foundation as a platinum member.

Tencent is one of a few companies to offer the highest level of support to the Linux Foundation. Other tech companies in this stable include IBM, Microsoft, and Intel, as well as fellow Chinese titan Huawei.

As part of the deal, Tencent will take a chair on the Foundation’s board of directors.

It has also promised to offer “further support and resources” to the Foundation’s efforts. So far, this has taken the form of Tencent donating several pieces of its software.

Already, it’s bequeathed TSeer, its service discovery tool, as well as TARS, which is the company’s microservices platform.

Valued at nearly $500 billion, Tencent is a behemoth of a company. It holds a massive sway over the Chinese tech market, and is spreading its cash (and influence) overseas with strategic investments in companies like Epic Games and Riot Games.

In terms of investments, joining the Linux Foundation will likely rank as a small one, but it’ll arguably be one of its most beneficial.

Not only will Tencent benefit from the Foundation’s collective expertise, but it’ll be able to shape the direction of one of the most fundamental pieces of software its business is built around — Linux.