China’s ByteDance is developing an artificial intelligence chip and is in discussions with Samsung Electronics to manufacture it, according to sources familiar with the matter (11/02). The TikTok parent aims to secure advanced processors as it expands its AI capabilities.

The company expects to receive sample chips by the end of March and plans to produce at least 100,000 units of the chip designed for AI inference tasks this year. Production may increase gradually to 350,000 units, the sources said.

SeedChip Project to Support AI Development

The chip initiative, called SeedChip, is part of ByteDance’s broader effort to invest in AI development. ByteDance founded its Seed unit in 2023 to develop AI models and promote their applications across its business, including short video, e-commerce, and enterprise cloud services.

Negotiations with Samsung also cover access to memory chips, which are in short supply amid the global AI infrastructure expansion, making the deal strategically important, one source said. A ByteDance spokesperson described information about its in-house chip project as inaccurate but did not provide further details.

AI Investment Plans for 2026

ByteDance intends to spend over 160 billion yuan ($22 billion) on AI-related procurement in 2026, with more than half allocated to purchasing Nvidia chips, including H200 models, and advancing its in-house chip, the sources said.

Zhao Qi, a ByteDance executive in charge of the Doubao chatbot and its overseas version Dola, told employees in a January all-hands meeting that AI investments would benefit all divisions. Zhao acknowledged that ByteDance’s AI models lag behind global leaders like OpenAI but pledged continued support for AI development this year.

China’s AI Chip Competition

ByteDance’s AI chip development follows a trend among Chinese tech companies to reduce reliance on foreign suppliers due to U.S. export controls on advanced chips. Its rivals Alibaba and Baidu are ahead in AI chip efforts: Alibaba recently unveiled its Zhenwu chip for large AI workloads, while Baidu sells chips externally and plans to list its chip unit Kunlunxin.

ByteDance’s chip initiatives date back to at least 2022, including hiring engineers and collaborating with U.S. chip designer Broadcom, with manufacturing previously planned with Taiwan’s TSMC.

PHOTO: BYTEDANCE

This article was created with AI assistance.

We make every effort to ensure the accuracy of our content, some information may be incorrect or outdated. Please let us know of any corrections at [email protected].