Editorial illustration for ByteDance taps Samsung for custom AI chips and scarce memory supply
ByteDance Develops Custom AI Chips with Samsung
ByteDance taps Samsung for custom AI chips and scarce memory supply
ByteDance is moving beyond off‑the‑shelf silicon, signing a deal with Samsung to produce bespoke AI processors. The Chinese tech giant, whose apps rely on ever‑growing machine‑learning workloads, has long wrestled with the limits of existing chips. By turning to Samsung’s foundry, it hopes to lock in a supply chain that can keep pace with its own product roadmap.
Yet the timing is crucial: the semiconductor market is stretched thin, with memory modules in particular hard to come by as firms worldwide race to build AI infrastructure. For a company that scales content recommendation across billions of users, any bottleneck could translate into slower feature rollouts or higher costs. That backdrop gives the partnership a layer of urgency that goes beyond mere custom‑design work.
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.
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.
Will the partnership deliver what ByteDance hopes? The company is negotiating with Samsung to fabricate a custom AI inference chip, internally dubbed SeedChip, and to secure a portion of the hard‑to‑obtain memory chips that dominate current AI supply chains. First sample chips are slated to arrive by the end of March, giving engineers a chance to test performance under real‑world loads.
Yet the talks are still ongoing, and no final agreement has been announced, leaving the timeline for broader production uncertain. If Samsung commits, ByteDance could reduce its reliance on external vendors for both processing and memory, a move that aligns with its broader push for vertical integration. However, the scarcity of memory components means any allocation will be tightly contested, and it remains unclear whether the proposed supply will meet the company’s scaling ambitions.
The outcome of these negotiations will shape ByteDance’s ability to field its own AI hardware, but concrete details beyond the planned sample delivery are still pending.
Further Reading
- ByteDance turns to Samsung for custom AI chip production and scarce memory supplies - The Decoder
- ByteDance developing AI chip, in manufacturing talks with Samsung, sources say - Reuters via MarketScreener
- ByteDance Eyes Homegrown AI Chip Deal With Samsung Amid Global Tech Rivalry - Sri Lanka Guardian
- China's ByteDance In Talks With Samsung To Manufacture AI Chips, Secure Scarce Memory Chip Supplies: Report - Finviz
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Common Questions Answered
How many AI inference chips does ByteDance plan to manufacture in 2026?
ByteDance aims to produce at least 100,000 AI inference chips this year, with plans to gradually scale up production to potentially 350,000 units. The company is working with Samsung Electronics to develop and manufacture these custom chips, with the first sample chips expected by the end of March.
Why is ByteDance negotiating with Samsung beyond chip manufacturing?
ByteDance is not only seeking chip manufacturing capabilities but also looking to secure scarce memory chip supplies amid the global AI infrastructure expansion. The tight demand for memory chips in the AI sector makes this aspect of the negotiations particularly valuable for the company's long-term AI development strategy.
When did ByteDance begin its efforts to develop in-house AI chips?
ByteDance initiated its multi-year effort to build in-house chips for AI workloads in 2022, starting by hiring chip-related talent. In 2024, the company collaborated with Broadcom to develop an advanced AI processor that would be compliant with U.S. export restrictions.