Qualcomm Reportedly Wins ByteDance AI ASIC Order to Support AI Agent Services

ByteDance is increasing investment in data centers and in-house chips to expand AI agent services such as Doubao. A May 9, 2026, report estimated its annual AI infrastructure spending at more than 200 billion yuan. Qualcomm, meanwhile, is using custom ASICs to enter the AI data-center market and reduce its reliance on its smartphone chip business.

Bloomberg reported on May 26, 2026, citing people familiar with the matter, that ByteDance would buy millions of AI ASICs from Qualcomm. The value of the deal was not disclosed, while Qualcomm shares rose as much as 8.3% intraday to a record high that day. Reuters separately reported on June 24 that the companies were discussing a custom VPU with mass production targeted by year-end, but neither company has formally confirmed the partnership or timetable.