In an internal memo, CEO Liang Rubo outlined the company’s commitment to advancing key generative AI applications and strengthening its foothold in specific verticals.
While ByteDance’s AI chatbot Doubao has become China’s most popular, with nearly 60 million monthly active users (second globally only to OpenAI’s ChatGPT), the company views chatbots as a slower-growth market. Instead, ByteDance is channeling resources into AI video generation, leveraging tools like Jimeng AI, the video editor Jianying (known as CapCut overseas), and emerging models like PixelDance and Seaweed.
Doubao, however, continues to evolve. Recent updates include capabilities for audio chats, image generation, and editing, reflecting ByteDance’s broader AI strategy to diversify and innovate its tools. Former ByteDance product manager Ma Nan noted that the company’s approach to conversational AI is less commercial and more exploratory, aligning with CEO Liang’s focus on long-term research and innovation.
Behind the scenes, ByteDance is aggressively recruiting top AI talent, poaching executives from competitors like 01.AI and Seq-AI, and hosting industry events like NeurIPS to attract researchers. The company’s investment in Nvidia chips has also surged, highlighting its commitment to staying ahead in the AI race.
ByteDance’s AI ambitions extend across a wide array of applications, from video and image generation to edtech and coding tools, earning it the moniker “App Factory.” As global competitors like OpenAI prepare to release next-generation video models, ByteDance is determined to solidify its dominance in AI video—a field it sees as central to the future of digital content creation.
