ByteDance Turns to Samsung to Manufacture Custom AI Chips Amid Supply Constraints
Beijing, Wednesday, 11 February 2026.
Targeting 100,000 units in 2026, the TikTok parent negotiates with Samsung to secure scarce memory supplies and launch its proprietary “SeedChip” hardware.
Strategic Hardware Pivot
As of Wednesday, February 11, 2026, ByteDance has entered into negotiations with Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) to manufacture proprietary artificial intelligence chips, a move designed to insulate the social media giant from global supply chain volatilities [1][2]. The parent company of TikTok is reportedly targeting the production of 100,000 chips specifically designed for AI inference tasks within this year [2][3]. This initiative highlights a broader trend among Chinese technology firms to reduce reliance on external suppliers like Nvidia amid tightening U.S. export controls and serves as a critical step toward hardware independence [1].
Production Targets and Timelines
The timeline for this project appears aggressive, with sources indicating that ByteDance aims to receive the first samples of its new hardware by the end of March 2026 [1][4]. If this initial phase proves successful, the company plans to scale manufacturing capacity significantly, potentially ramping up output to 350,000 units as it integrates the technology into its operational infrastructure [1][5]. This volume would support the company’s massive computational needs for its algorithmic recommendations and data processing [1].
Securing Critical Memory Supplies
A pivotal factor driving ByteDance toward Samsung is the Korean manufacturer’s ability to provide essential memory chips, which are currently in short supply due to the global boom in AI infrastructure construction [1]. By partnering with Samsung, ByteDance seeks to bundle the manufacturing of its logic chips with guaranteed access to high-performance memory components, making the deal particularly attractive in a constrained market environment [1][4]. Samsung Electronics has separately confirmed expectations for strong memory chip demand persisting through 2026 and into 2027, driven largely by such AI applications [3].
The ‘SeedChip’ Investment Strategy
Financially, ByteDance is committing substantial resources to its AI capabilities, planning to spend over 160 billion yuan ($22 billion) on AI-related procurement in 2026 alone [1][5]. While the company is aggressively pursuing its own hardware, it remains pragmatic about its immediate needs; reports suggest that more than half of this budget is allocated to purchasing Nvidia chips, including the H200 model, alongside the development of its in-house silicon [1][2]. The proprietary chip, codenamed “SeedChip,” is part of a strategy stemming from the company’s “Seed” project established in 2023 to develop large language models [1][4]. Despite these detailed reports, a ByteDance spokesperson stated that information regarding the in-house chip project is inaccurate, though they did not provide specific corrections [1][2].