ByteDance's $20 Billion AI Investment Plan: Boosting Capabilities Amid Global Challenges

Report: ByteDance sets aside around $20B for AI spending this year - SiliconANGLE

Report: ByteDance sets aside around $20B for AI spending this year TikTok's parent company ByteDance Ltd. has reportedly set aside 150 billion yuan ($20.64 billion) for its capital expenditure this year, and the bulk of that money will be spent on boosting its artificial intelligence capabilities, Reuters reported today. The report cites two anonymous people familiar with the matter as saying that around half of the amount will be spent on AI-related infrastructure outside China, such as data center resources and networking equipment. Reuters added that the main beneficiaries of ByteDance's spending will include Nvidia Corp., which manufactures the powerful graphics processing units that drive many of the most advanced AI models today, as well as the Chinese chipmaker Cambricon Technologies Co. Ltd. and networking gear provider Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. The story suggests ByteDance is going to spend significantly more than the $7 billion figure posited by The Information in December, although that earlier report was referring specifically to the company's budget for GPUs. ByteDance may not actually buy many GPUs, as The Information's report said the plan is to rent them from data centers located outside of mainland China. Renting GPUs makes sense for ByteDance because, as a Chinese company, it is subject to severe restrictions on the purchase of GPUs and other advanced AI accelerators from Western companies. The U.S. government has imposed stringent rules that block the export of cutting-edge chips to its geopolitical rival, over fears that they may be used for military purposes. The U.S. sanctions mean that most Chinese technology firms are instead forced to turn to cloud infrastructure providers located outside the country, although ByteDance is said to be one of the biggest buyers of Nvidia's H20 GPUs. Those chips are a customized version of the H100 GPU that was built specifically for Chinese customers, but they aren't as powerful. ByteDance's thirst for greater AI processing power has led it to become one of Microsoft Corp.'s biggest customers in Asia for cloud computing resources, Reuters said. Reuters adds that ByteDance is spending big on AI in order to protect its market lead at home. Although it only really joined the AI race early last year, it has already built up a lead over rivals such as Baidu Inc. and Tencent Holdings Ltd., offering 15 standalone AI applications. Its top AI app is the chatbot Duobao, which is similar to ChatGPT and boasts around 75 million users in China. Others include Jimeng, a text-to-video generator; Xinghui, which is used to generate images from text prompts; Kouzi, a tool for customer service chatbot development; and Maoxing, which is designed to provide emotional support to human users. Some of ByteDance's apps are available overseas. For instance, Doubao is known as "Cici" in international markets, while Jimeng is called "Dreamina". While ByteDance is believed to have set aside more money for AI spending than its main rivals in China, the amount reported by Reuters is still dwarfed by that of many American firms. For instance, Google LLC has reportedly set aside a $50 billion budget for AI infrastructure in the current fiscal year, while Microsoft has said it will spend $80 billion on AI this year. Separately, ByteDance continues to negotiate with U.S. authorities over the future of the TikTok app in that country. On Monday, new U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order, delaying the enforcement of a ban on U.S. infrastructure providers working with the company for 75 days.

Exclusive-ByteDance plans $20 billion capex in 2025, mostly on AI, sources say

BEIJING (Reuters) - ByteDance, the Chinese owner of TikTok, has earmarked over 150 billion yuan ($20.64 billion) in capital expenditure for this year, much of which will be centred on artificial intelligence, two people briefed on the matter said. The privately held technology giant plans to spend about half of the amount abroad on AI-related infrastructure, primarily data centres and networking equipment, they said. The main beneficiaries of the spending will be chipmakers Huawei Technologies and Cambricon Technologies plus U.S. supplier Nvidia, the people said, declining to be identified as the information was confidential. ByteDance, Huawei and Cambricon did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday. Nvidia declined to comment. The spending will help ByteDance defend its AI lead at home. Having begun 2024 as a laggard, it now has over 15 standalone AI applications - more than rivals such as Baidu and Tencent Holdings - including top chatbot Doubao. The money will also reinforce AI offerings abroad at a time when ByteDance is grappling with the future of TikTok in the United States. U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order for a 75 day delay in the enforcement of a ban on the short-video app. It was unclear how the 2025 plan compared with prior years as the private company does not disclose financial details. On Tuesday, the Financial Times reported ByteDance planned $12 billion for AI infrastructure. In December, The Information reported a plan for up to $7 billion to access Nvidia chips outside China, to which the U.S. restricts high-tech exports. ByteDance is already the biggest buyer of Nvidia's H20 AI chips, which the U.S. chipmaker tailored for China in response to restrictions, Reuters reported in September. The TikTok owner is also Microsoft's biggest client in Asia for Nvidia chips accessible via cloud computing, sources have told Reuters. Its AI apps in China include Doubao, meaning "bean bag", with 75 million monthly active users, QuestMobile data showed. It also operates text-to-video generator Jimeng and image generator Xinghui, as well as Kouzi, a platform for custom chatbot development, and Maoxiang, which offers role-play and emotional support. Unlike domestic peers, ByteDance has created overseas counterparts for its biggest apps - internationally, Doubao is called Cici and Jimeng is Dreamina. On Wednesday, ByteDance updated its flagship AI model - also called Doubao - aimed at challenging Microsoft-backed OpenAI's reasoning model products. Still, its spending is modest compared to U.S. tech giants. Google parent Alphabet planned $50 billion for chips, data centres and other expenses last year, whereas Microsoft spent $55.7 billion in its fiscal year through June 30 with a significant portion on AI infrastructure. ($1=7.2671 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting by Liam Mo and Brenda Goh; Editing by Christopher Cushing)

TikTok-owner ByteDance plans to spend $12bn on AI chips in 2025

TikTok-owner ByteDance plans to spend more than $12bn on artificial intelligence infrastructure this year, betting on the cutting-edge technology for new growth while under pressure from Washington to sell its popular video-sharing app in the US. The Beijing-based company has budgeted Rmb40bn ($5.5bn) to acquire AI chips in China in 2025, according to two people familiar with the plans, which would double the amount it spent last year. The group also plans to invest about $6.8bn overseas to beef up its foundation model training capabilities using advanced Nvidia chips. About 60 per cent of ByteDance's domestic semiconductor orders would go to Chinese suppliers such as Huawei and Cambricon, while the rest would be spent on Nvidia chips that have been watered down to align with US export controls, according to the people. Beijing has given Chinese tech companies informal guidance to buy at least 30 per cent of their chips from the country's own suppliers, the people added. The $6.8bn in overseas investment was budgeted to build out ByteDance's AI computing capacity for model training. This investment could face challenges from recently expanded US export controls designed to hamper Chinese companies building sensitive technologies. The push comes as ByteDance faces pressure in its core social media business. TikTok restored service to 170mn US users on Sunday after the country's incoming President Donald Trump vowed that companies that distributed and hosted the platform would not be held liable for violating a US law that banned the video app unless it was sold. While Trump signed an executive order on Monday to keep TikTok open for 75 days, he said he wanted a US company to have 50 per cent ownership in TikTok in the future. Trump said he could "certainly" put tariffs on China if it rejected a deal. Any such transaction could affect plans for a future ByteDance initial public offering, with the company valuing itself at $300bn during a recent share buyback programme. The company drew up its huge purchasing budget for graphic processing units in 2025 before the recent interventions in the US. ByteDance, which under the direction of the tech group's founder Zhang Yiming has become the frontrunner in China's AI race, is doubling down to build out its own AI infrastructure to train its foundation model, as well as to implement AI functions across its various platforms. It has ramped up computing capacity in south-east Asia, particularly in Malaysia. Though Chinese companies have been banned from purchasing Nvidia chips outside of the US since 2023, they have been able to secure access to chips through rental agreements with third-party data centre providers, several industry insiders said. This loophole was closed last week by the outgoing Biden administration, which issued new rules that the identity of both the owner and operator of the chips must undergo a review process. While Trump could take a different stance on export controls, the regulations -- if strictly implemented -- would make ByteDance's chip purchases overseas more difficult than ever. It has already made large orders to build up overseas AI capacity this year, such as through rental agreements, according to one of the people. It should be sufficient for most of the company's needs in 2025 but what happened after that remained uncertain, the person added. ByteDance's budget for purchases of AI chips overseas was previously reported by news outlet The Information. In response to the FT's reporting, ByteDance said: "The anonymously sourced information about our plan is incorrect." ByteDance also faces challenges from deep-pocketed local competitors, such as Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent, which are investing heavily in generative AI. Alongside these rivals, it has been pushing out more capable models and lowering costs for developers. Chinese companies still need to build up the capacity of AI data centres onshore to support the use of AI applications even after the models have been trained. ByteDance plans to use most of its Chinese AI chips -- including Huawei's Ascend and Cambricon -- for "inference" tasks, the computation undertaken by large language models to generate a response to a prompt. ByteDance released its AI chatbot Doubao in August 2023 and the AI app has become China's most popular AI application, according to website analytics site Aicpb.com. Doubao, which means "beanbag" in Chinese, had 71mn regular monthly active users as of December, compared with OpenAI's 300mn weekly active users globally. Nvidia recorded $11.6bn in revenue from China, including Hong Kong, or about 13 per cent of its global total, during the first three quarters of 2024, according to company filings. ByteDance is by far the largest client for Nvidia in China. The TikTok parent can only buy less advanced chips such as Nvidia's H20 for Chinese data centres, a specialised and less-powerful version of its GPUs tailored to align with US export controls. In 2024, it ordered about 230,000 of Nvidia's chips, mostly H20s, according to estimates from tech consultancy Omdia. This compares with 485,000 of the more advanced "Hopper" chips bought by Microsoft last year and the 224,000 acquired by Meta. Tech companies around the world have spent an estimated $229bn on servers in 2024, according to Omdia, led by Microsoft's $31bn in capital expenditure and Amazon's $26bn.

ByteDance plans $20 billion capex in 2025, mostly on AI, sources say

ByteDance plans to invest over $20.64 billion in capital expenditure this year, mainly focusing on artificial intelligence infrastructure such as data centers and networking equipment. This spending aims to bolster AI capabilities both domestically and internationally, with significant investments in chipmakers like Huawei, Cambricon Technologies, and Nvidia.ByteDance, the Chinese owner of TikTok, has earmarked over 150 billion yuan ($20.64 billion) in capital expenditure for this year, much of which will be centred on artificial intelligence, two people briefed on the matter said. The privately held technology giant plans to spend about half of the amount abroad on AI-related infrastructure, primarily data centres and networking equipment, they said. The main beneficiaries of the spending will be chipmakers Huawei Technologies and Cambricon Technologies plus US supplier Nvidia, the people said, declining to be identified as the information was confidential. ByteDance, Huawei and Cambricon did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday. Nvidia declined to comment. The spending will help ByteDance defend its AI lead at home. Having begun 2024 as a laggard, it now has over 15 standalone AI applications - more than rivals such as Baidu and Tencent Holdings - including top chatbot Doubao. The money will also reinforce AI offerings abroad at a time when ByteDance is grappling with the future of TikTok in the United States. US president Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order for a 75 day delay in the enforcement of a ban on the short-video app. It was unclear how the 2025 plan compared with prior years as the private company does not disclose financial details. On Tuesday, the Financial Times reported ByteDance planned $12 billion for AI infrastructure. In December, The Information reported a plan for up to $7 billion to access Nvidia chips outside China, to which the U.S. restricts high-tech exports. ByteDance is already the biggest buyer of Nvidia's H20 AI chips, which the US chipmaker tailored for China in response to restrictions, Reuters reported in September. The TikTok owner is also Microsoft's biggest client in Asia for Nvidia chips accessible via cloud computing, sources have told Reuters. Its AI apps in China include Doubao, meaning "bean bag", with 75 million monthly active users, QuestMobile data showed. It also operates text-to-video generator Jimeng and image generator Xinghui, as well as Kouzi, a platform for custom chatbot development, and Maoxiang, which offers role-play and emotional support. Unlike domestic peers, ByteDance has created overseas counterparts for its biggest apps - internationally, Doubao is called Cici and Jimeng is Dreamina. On Wednesday, ByteDance updated its flagship AI model - also called Doubao - aimed at challenging Microsoft-backed OpenAI's reasoning model products. Still, its spending is modest compared to U.S. tech giants. Google parent Alphabet planned $50 billion for chips, data centres and other expenses last year, whereas Microsoft spent $55.7 billion in its fiscal year through June 30 with a significant portion on AI infrastructure.

ByteDance to invest $12 billion in AI infrastructure by 2025- FT By Investing.com

Investing.com -- ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, plans to invest over $12 billion in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure by 2025, according to the Financial Times. This strategic move comes amidst pressure from Washington for the Chinese firm to sell its popular video-sharing app in the United States. ByteDance disputed the information, with a spokesperson stating that the anonymously sourced details about their plan were incorrect. The report also suggested that the company intends to spend 40 billion yuan ($5.50 billion) on acquiring AI chips in China by 2025. In addition, ByteDance is expected to invest approximately $6.8 billion overseas to enhance its foundation model training capabilities using advanced Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) chips. The report further indicates that about 60% of ByteDance's domestic semiconductor orders would be allocated to Chinese suppliers such as Huawei and Cambricon. The remaining orders would be spent on Nvidia chips that have been modified to comply with U.S. export controls. In accordance with informal guidance from Beijing, tech companies have been advised to purchase at least 30% of their chips from domestic suppliers. In a recent development, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an order on Monday to postpone a ban on TikTok, which was initially scheduled to commence from Jan. 19. This order has provided a temporary reprieve for the video-sharing app in the U.S. market.

TikTok Eyes Partial Sale and Doubling Down on AI | PYMNTS.com

The high-stakes drama involving TikTok's future in the United States and the financial strategies of its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, took a turn as investors considered possible options. An American ban on the social media app, based on concerns about data privacy, content moderation and national security, has been delayed by an executive order. As the countdown on that delay continues, General Atlantic CEO Bill Ford, whose firm holds a stake in ByteDance, told Bloomberg Television on Thursday (Jan. 23) that a partial sale of TikTok's U.S. operations that meets government security demands is possible. A partial sale would still allow ByteDance to maintain some control over its flagship asset. "We are optimistic we will find a solution," Ford said, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos. The exact structure of such a deal remains unclear, but it could involve either selling a significant stake to American investors or creating a new entity to oversee TikTok's U.S. operations. PYMNTS reported that bidders have begun showing interest in acquiring TikTok. A company that recently expressed interest in merging with TikTok is the search engine startup Perplexity AI. It also appears ByteDance's contingency strategy, in case a deal can't get done in time, is to double down on AI. Anonymous sources told Reuters that ByteDance has earmarked over 150 billion yuan ($20.64 billion) in capital expenditures -- mostly related to artificial intelligence (AI) -- for this year. Compare that to a recent report by the Financial Times that said ByteDance was allocating $12 billion for AI infrastructure. The company has over 15 standalone AI applications, according to a Reuters report, including the chatbot Doubao, which has 75 million monthly users, the text-to-video generator Jimeng, and the image generator Xinghu. Sources said about half of the $20 billion capital expenditure investment is planned for overseas AI infrastructure, including data centers and networking equipment, and that major chipmakers Huawei, Cambricon, and U.S. supplier Nvidia are expected to be the main beneficiaries of this spending. Reuters noted that ByteDance is the biggest buyer of Nvidia's H20 AI chips, which the chipmaker tailored for China in response to trade restrictions. When contacted by Reuters for comment, ByteDance responded that the information provided was "incorrect."

TikTok owner ByteDance plans to spend $12 billion on AI chips in 2025, FT reports

(Reuters) - TikTok owner ByteDance plans to spend more than $12 billion on artificial intelligence infrastructure this year, betting on the cutting-edge technology for new growth, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. This move comes as the company faces pressure from Washington to sell its popular video-sharing app in the United States. (Reporting by Disha Mishra in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)

Is TikTok's Parent Company Buying $12B Worth of AI Chips? - Decrypt

Tiktok's parent company, ByteDance, may be planning to spend more than $12 billion on AI chips in 2025, the Financial Times reported Wednesday. The move would effectively double its investment from last year, even as its flagship app navigates choppy political waters in the U.S. Chinese tech companies face mounting pressure from Beijing to boost their local industries and reduce their dependency on Nvidia AI cards, especially as U.S. sanctions prevent the companies from exporting their best chips to the nation. ByteDance is reportedly investing heavily in AI, with $5.5 billion of its $12 billion budget allocated for domestic chip purchases from manufacturers such as Huawei and Cambricon, per to the report. The remaining $6.8 billion would be marked for overseas AI infrastructure, though this chunk faces some serious roadblocks. Despite U.S. sanctions against the Chinese AI industry, domestic production and development are becoming more dominant. Bytedance's AI chatbot Doubao registers over 60 million monthly active users, nearly half of all the visits Chinese users make to AI chatbots. In general, the number of monthly active users of AI apps in China doubled over the five months, according to statements made by Chen Yan, research director of QuestMobile, according to Yicai Global. On Wednesday, ByteDance called the FT's report as false. A company spokesperson reportedly told Chinese media, "The anonymously sourced information about our plan is incorrect." "ByteDance gives great importance to the development and investment in the field of artificial intelligence, but the relevant budget and planning rumors are not correct," the spokesperson reportedly said. This isn't the first time ByteDance has had to fight off rumors about its AI strategy. The Information recently claimed the company was dodging U.S. sanctions by storing Nvidia chips in Southeast Asian data centers instead of bringing them to China. ByteDance shot that down fast, telling TechCrunch that "ByteDance has not bought H100s for its data centers outside of the U.S. since the relevant U.S. export control rules took effect." Also, in September, it was reported that ByteDance was cooking up its own AI chips. The company set the record straight, saying its semiconductor work was still "in the early stage" and mostly focused on making its ad and recommendation systems run cheaper. ByteDance made sure to note that all its chip projects play by the rules when it comes to trade regulations.

TikTok-Parent ByteDance Plans $12 Billion AI Chip Investment In 2025 To Bolster Global AI Ambitions Amid US Export Controls: Report - Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META)

TikTok-parent ByteDance is reportedly gearing up to invest over $12 billion in artificial intelligence infrastructure by 2025. What Happened: The Beijing-based tech giant has allocated approximately RMB 40 billion ($5.5 billion) for AI chip acquisitions within China, effectively doubling its expenditure from the previous year, reported the Financial Times, citing two people familiar with the plans. ByteDance also plans to invest around $6.8 billion overseas to improve its model training capabilities using advanced Nvidia Corp. NVDA chips. About 60% of ByteDance's domestic semiconductor orders are expected to be fulfilled by Chinese suppliers like Huawei Technologies and Cambricon. The remaining orders will involve Nvidia chips modified to comply with U.S. export restrictions, the report noted. See Also: Samsung, Google Team Up On AR Glasses Development, Duo To Enter Race Against Meta And Apple Why It Matters: This substantial investment is part of ByteDance's strategy to expand its AI infrastructure and maintain its competitive edge in the AI sector. However, it may encounter challenges due to U.S. export controls aimed at limiting Chinese access to sensitive technologies. ByteDance is currently the largest buyer of Nvidia chips in Asia, surpassing competitors such as Alibaba and Baidu. The TikTok parent is restricted to purchasing less advanced chips like Nvidia's H20, which are specifically designed with reduced capabilities to comply with U.S. export restrictions for Chinese data centers. In 2024, ByteDance reportedly procured around 230,000 Nvidia chips, primarily H20 models, according to estimates from tech consultancy Omdia. For comparison, Microsoft Corp. MSFT acquired approximately 485,000 of Nvidia's more advanced "Hopper" chips during the same period, while Meta Platforms Inc. META purchased 224,000. ByteDance is also under significant pressure in its primary social media business. TikTok resumed operations for 170 million U.S. users on Sunday. On Monday, President Donald Trump issued an executive order allowing TikTok to remain operational for 75 days. However, he underscored his expectation for a U.S. company to acquire a 50% ownership stake in the app and hinted at the possibility of imposing tariffs on China if a deal was not reached. Read Next: Satya Nadella Stands Firm After Elon Musk Questions Stargate's $100 Billion Funding Potential: 'All I Know Is, I'm Good For My $80 Billion' Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Photo courtesy: Shutterstock METAMeta Platforms Inc$624.220.12%Overview Rating:Good62.5%Technicals Analysis1000100Financials Analysis400100WatchlistOverviewMSFTMicrosoft Corp$442.46-0.84%NVDANVIDIA Corp$144.05-2.05%Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

FirstFT: ByteDance plans to spend $12bn on AI chips this year

TikTok owner ByteDance plans to spend more than $12bn on artificial intelligence infrastructure this year, betting on the cutting-edge technology for new growth as its popular video-sharing app comes under pressure in the US. The Beijing-based company has budgeted Rmb40bn ($5.5bn) to acquire AI chips in China in 2025, according to two people familiar with the plans, which would double the amount it spent last year. The group also plans to invest about $6.8bn overseas to beef up its foundation model training capabilities using advanced Nvidia chips. Beijing has given Chinese tech companies informal guidance to buy at least 30 per cent of their chips from the country's own suppliers, the people added. ByteDance, having emerged as the frontrunner in China's AI race, is doubling down to build out its own AI infrastructure to train its foundation model, as well as to implement AI functions across its various platforms. Here's what else we know about the TikTok parent's plans. Here's what else we're keeping tabs on today: This Friday, join consumer editor Claer Barrett, writer of the Sort Your Financial Life Out newsletter series, as she discusses how to invest in 2025 with other FT experts. Register for free. 1. Donald Trump has warned Vladimir Putin that the US is ready to punish Russia with a barrage of new trade restrictions if Moscow fails to reach an agreement soon to end the war in Ukraine. The Trump administration believes there are more ways that the US could tighten the screws on Russia financially, in addition to the sweeping sanctions Joe Biden imposed on Moscow after it invaded Ukraine in 2022. 2. Pakistan will request the extradition of the billionaire property tycoon Malik Riaz Hussain from the United Arab Emirates, targeting a powerful businessman linked to the jailed former prime minister Imran Khan. The developer said fraud allegations by Pakistan's anti-corruption watchdog are an attempt to "blackmail" him. Here are more details. 3. Two Iranian cargo vessels carrying a crucial chemical ingredient for missile propellant will sail from China to Iran over the next few weeks, according to intelligence from security officials in two western countries. Officials said the chemicals were being shipped to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the elite arm of the Iranian military. Read the full story. 4. Elon Musk poured cold water on Stargate, a massive US artificial intelligence infrastructure project announced by Trump on Tuesday. "They don't actually have the money", the Tesla boss said about the $500bn initiative backed by OpenAI and SoftBank, in a rare break with the president. Here's how OpenAI's chief executive Sam Altman responded. 5. Exclusive: Chinese banks have been pitching to work on the blockbuster Hong Kong secondary listing of the world's leading EV battery maker CATL for as little as 0.01 per cent in fees. The ultra-low pitches are a sign of the cut-throat competition in the territory's once-lucrative listings market where business has significantly slowed. Chinese officials now hope it may be possible to avert a second trade war with the US, after Donald Trump did not levy immediate tariffs and hinted at a potential broader deal involving TikTok's ownership. There is "cautious optimism", one expert said, but the question is what kind of deal would be acceptable to both sides. Britain's defence minister warned Russian President Vladimir Putin that "we will not shy away from robust action" after telling parliament that a Russian spy vessel had been operating in UK waters for the second time since November. Our film critic Danny Leigh remembers David Lynch, the American filmmaker who died recently at 78, and explains why interviewing him felt pointless even though no director meant more to him.