Qualcomm Partners with ByteDance on AI Chip Collaboration

ByteDance is reportedly planning up to $70 billion in capital spending this year to build data centers and AI infrastructure, funded largely from about $50 billion profit in 2025. Sources told Bloomberg the figure is preliminary and could be adjusted quarterly; internal estimates put 2026 capex between ¥4,000–5,000 billion (~$560–700B), and in an ideal scenario could rise to $100 billion next year. Last year’s capex was about $25 billion. The push aims to strengthen ByteDance’s position in AI chatbots, video generation, and global expansion, helped by lower Chinese data-center costs; the company is also procuring millions of Qualcomm chips to support AI agent services.

Qualcomm and ByteDance have reportedly struck a deal for customized AI ASICs, with ByteDance set to purchase “millions” of chips to power its AI services. Sources told Bloomberg the agreement will convert ByteDance’s completed in-house chip designs into production-ready semiconductors, while Qualcomm recently said it would deliver its first ASIC to a hyperscaler this year. Analysts have previously identified ByteDance and Amazon as customers for Qualcomm’s ASIC design services. The move signals ByteDance’s push to scale AI infrastructure and the broader industry trend toward bespoke ASICs for cloud AI workloads, which could reshape supplier relationships and demand for HBM and foundry capacity.