ByteDance is in talks to buy AI inference chips from Iluvatar CoreX, a Shanghai-based graphics processing unit (GPU) maker.

The company is also considering Baidu’s Kunlunxin chips, according to two sources, as Chinese companies turn to local hardware amid US export controls.

If a deal is reached, Iluvatar would become ByteDance’s third domestic GPU supplier after Huawei and Cambricon.

The sources said Iluvatar is expected to ship at least 50,000 chips to ByteDance this year, mostly for inference workloads linked to the expansion of ByteDance’s Doubao chatbot, though the deal terms could still change.

Iluvatar sells general-purpose GPUs, including the Zhikai inference series, and had delivered 52,000 chips to more than 290 customers by mid-2025.

Chinese chipmakers captured nearly 41% of China’s AI accelerator server market last year as US curbs on advanced Nvidia chips pushed companies toward domestic alternatives.

🔗 Source: Reuters

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