ByteDance may have to sell TikTok in the US if a proposed bill passes the Senate. Some high-profile investors, including former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, online video platform Rumble, and former Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick, have expressed interest in acquiring the app. This article presents a list of known potential buyers along with a primer on companies that have previously tried to purchase TikTok.

American lawmakers are pushing for a bill that would force ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, to divest from the app within 165 days. Otherwise, the company will face a ban in the US due to concerns over Chinese ownership and potential national security threats. TikTok has expressed concerns, claiming the bill infringes on its First Amendment rights.

The House passed a bill requiring ByteDance to sell TikTok or face having it banned on US devices. The bill received bipartisan backing with a 352-65 vote. Proponents argue the measure is vital for national security, while opponents contend it violates free speech rights and could harm businesses. The bill’s fate in the Senate remains uncertain.

DecoupleQ is a quantization approach that significantly enhances the accuracy of large models at ultra-low bit levels. This method restructures the quantization process by splitting model parameters into integer and floating-point parts that are then optimized using traditional methods.

President Joe Biden has signed into law a bill that orders TikTok owner ByteDance to sell the company within 270 days or lose access to the US market. Biden can extend the deadline by up to 90 days if a sale is in progress. If ByteDance doesn't sell TikTok, app stores in the US will have to drop the app and internet hosting services will be prohibited from providing services that enable distribution of TikTok in the US. ByteDance will file a lawsuit to attempt to block the law.

President Biden has signed a foreign aid package that includes a bill that will ban TikTok if China-based parent company ByteDance fails to divest the app within a year. The company plans to contest the law in court, arguing the law is an infringement on the constitutional rights of U.S. users. Uncertainties linger over China's reaction and whether it will even allow a potential sale.

ByteDance would rather shut down TikTok than sell the company. The US only provides a quarter of TikTok's global revenue and only represents 5% of ByteDance's daily active users across all of its media platforms. The short deadline to sell would likely put downward pressure on any potential sale price, making the option even less appealing. Selling the company would mean divesting the algorithms that power TikTok and its video recommendations, which raises more complications.

TikTok has been spending $20 million a month to purchase OpenAI models through Microsoft. The purchases make up about 25% of Microsoft's AI revenue. TikTok's parent ByteDance is reportedly building its own AI models - if successful, TikTok would no longer need OpenAI or Microsoft. Other companies reportedly purchasing OpenAI models through Microsoft include AT&T, Coca-Cola, Fidelity, Volvo, and Walmart.

ByteDance has released a new generative AI app called Jimeng AI in mainland China. It is available on Apple's App Store and local Android stores. Jimeng AI can create images and videos from user text prompts. It offers free access for a limited number of creations, with subscription options available. Jimeng AI is comparable to OpenAI's models and promises immediate content generation.

ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, is reportedly shifting its strategy for developing artificial intelligence (AI) models by utilizing chips from Huawei, a prominent Chinese technology firm. This decision comes in response to U.S. export restrictions that have limited ByteDance's access to NVIDIA chips, which were previously employed in their AI projects. The information was initially disclosed by Reuters, citing three anonymous sources familiar with the matter, while a fourth source confirmed that a new AI model is indeed under development. In the past, ByteDance had been using NVIDIA’s H20 AI chips, which were specifically designed for the Chinese market to circumvent trade restrictions imposed by the U.S. government in 2022. These restrictions aimed to slow down the technological advancements of Chinese companies by limiting their access to certain high-performance AI chips. As a result, ByteDance has placed an order for 100,000 Ascend 910B chips from Huawei this year, although only 30,000 have been delivered so far. The Ascend 910B chips are reported to outperform NVIDIA’s A100 chips in terms of GPU performance and computing power efficiency, although the ongoing chip shortage has impeded the progress of ByteDance's AI model development. While ByteDance has not officially confirmed this transition to Huawei chips, it reflects a broader trend among Chinese companies moving away from reliance on Western technology. This shift is indicative of China's efforts to bolster its domestic technology sector and reduce dependence on foreign products, particularly in light of the increasing geopolitical tensions and trade restrictions. In addition to ByteDance's developments, the tech landscape is witnessing various other advancements and changes. For instance, OpenAI has introduced a new feature called Canvas for its ChatGPT interface, enhancing user collaboration. Tesla has issued another recall for its Cybertruck due to a rear-view camera issue, and Samsung is expanding its FAST TV Plus service to include a significant amount of K-drama content. Furthermore, Uber is partnering with Avride to provide self-driving vehicles for rides and deliveries, showcasing the ongoing evolution in the transportation sector. Overall, the move by ByteDance to adopt Huawei chips underscores the shifting dynamics in the tech industry, particularly as companies navigate the complexities of international trade and technological competition.