Agora, Inc. operates as a leading provider of Real-Time Engagement Platform-as-a-Service (RTE-PaaS), enabling developers to integrate high-quality, low-latency communication features into their applications. The company's core business model is usage-based, generating revenue by charging customers for the volume of video, voice, and data engagement processed through its platform. Instead of building communication infrastructure from scratch, clients utilize Agora's APIs and SDKs to power live shopping, telehealth, online education, gaming, and social media interactions.
Geographically and operationally, the company employs a dual-brand strategy. The "Agora" brand, headquartered in Santa Clara, California, serves the United States and international markets, while the "Shengwang" brand, based in Shanghai, caters exclusively to the Chinese market. In 2025, the company generated $141.1 million in total revenue, with the global Agora segment contributing $74.9 million (53%) and the Shengwang segment contributing $66.2 million (47%).
Agora's competitive position is anchored by its proprietary Software-Defined Real-Time Network (SD-RTN), a virtual network overlaying the public internet that optimizes data routing to minimize latency and packet loss globally. Recently, the company has strategically pivoted toward conversational AI infrastructure, launching an AI Engine and partnering with major AI developers to facilitate real-time, voice-driven AI interactions. Following a period of aggressive restructuring and cost optimization, Agora successfully returned to GAAP profitability in 2025, positioning itself as a critical infrastructure provider for the next generation of interactive and AI-enabled applications.
