ByteDance is advancing plans for an in-house artificial intelligence chip and has engaged in talks with Samsung Electronics to manufacture the device, according to people familiar with the matter. The Chinese technology firm has set an internal target to obtain sample chips by the end of March and to produce a minimum of 100,000 units this year, with the design oriented primarily toward AI inference workloads.
Those involved in discussions say production could be increased over time to a potential peak of about 350,000 units. Negotiations with Samsung are reported to cover not only foundry services but also possible access to memory chips, a component that is currently in constrained supply as companies expand AI infrastructure worldwide.
ByteDance provided a terse response, saying the information about an internal chip program was inaccurate, without offering further detail. Samsung declined to comment on the discussions.
The project is known internally by the code name SeedChip and forms part of ByteDance's broader push into AI capabilities, including development of large language models and the necessary underlying infrastructure. The company has also been linked to work with Broadcom on an advanced AI processor, indicating multiple parallel efforts in custom silicon for AI.
Alongside its chip development activities, ByteDance plans substantial AI-related procurement this year. The company intends to spend more than 160 billion yuan, equivalent to about $22 billion, on AI purchases, a figure that explicitly includes acquisitions of NVIDIA chips.
Context and implications
The reported timeline centers on rapid prototyping with a target for sample delivery by the end of March and initial unit volumes this year aimed at inference tasks. The discussions with a major silicon manufacturer and the inclusion of memory access in talks reflect the importance of supply-chain considerations for AI deployments.
ByteDance's public statement calling the reporting inaccurate introduces an immediate uncertainty about the precise scope and status of the program, and Samsung's lack of comment leaves the manufacturing partnership unconfirmed from the vendor side.
Key factual points:
- ByteDance is developing an AI chip intended mainly for inference and has discussed manufacturing the device with Samsung Electronics.
- The company aims to receive sample chips by the end of March and to produce at least 100,000 units this year, with production possibly rising to 350,000 units.
- Discussions reportedly include potential access to memory chips; ByteDance said the reporting about the in-house project was inaccurate, and Samsung declined to comment.