ByteDance is in advanced talks to buy custom data center chips from MediaTek, a Taiwanese semiconductor company, according to people familiar with the matter. If completed, the deal would make ByteDance MediaTek’s second major customer for application-specific integrated circuits, or ASICs, after Google.

Chinese tech companies are seeking alternatives as US export controls restrict access to Nvidia’s most advanced AI chips, while domestic suppliers such as Huawei cannot meet all demand.

Those controls apply broadly to advanced semiconductors based on technical thresholds and end use, so custom AI accelerators are not automatically exempt.

The potential order fits ByteDance’s wider AI infrastructure push.

ByteDance has also held talks with Qualcomm on custom silicon design services and separately reached an AI chip supply deal with Qualcomm earlier this year, according to people familiar with the matter.

MediaTek already offers custom ASIC services for data centers and has said advanced packaging is important for AI chips.

🔗 Source: Bloomberg

Recent ByteDance developments