ByteDance turns to Samsung for custom AI chip production and scarce memory supplies

Bytedance is in talks with Samsung to produce a custom AI chip, a deal that could also give the TikTok parent company access to hard-to-get memory chips, according to Reuters.

Bytedance is developing its own AI chip for inference tasks under the codename SeedChip and is negotiating with Samsung to manufacture it, Reuters reports. What makes the deal especially interesting: the talks also cover access to memory chip supplies, which are extremely scarce amid the global AI infrastructure buildout - making the arrangement particularly valuable for Bytedance.

The company plans to receive its first sample chips by the end of March and produce at least 100,000 units this year, with a possible ramp-up to 350,000. Bytedance intends to spend more than 160 billion yuan (roughly $22 billion) on AI-related procurement in 2026 - more than half of that going toward Nvidia chips, including H200 models, and development of its own chip.

Bytedance executive Zhao Qi acknowledged during an internal meeting in January that the company's AI models still trail global leaders like OpenAI, but pledged continued support for AI development. Bytedance itself denies the chip project - a spokesperson told Reuters the information was inaccurate without providing further details.