April 20 — ByteDance's massive push into artificial intelligence is coming at a steep cost. According to a report from the Science and Technology Innovation Board Daily (China's tech-focused financial newspaper), the company's net profit plummeted by more than 70% in 2025 compared to the previous year, with its profit margin also taking a significant hit.
The reason? ByteDance ramped up its investment in AI-related businesses during the third and fourth quarters of 2025, pouring cash into the technology that's reshaping everything from social media to enterprise software.
The Overseas Engine Keeps Running
While profits tanked at home, ByteDance's international business was a different story. Overseas revenue grew by nearly 50% year-over-year in 2025, pushing its share of total revenue from about 25% in 2024 to over 30%—a new record for the company.
TikTok Shop was a major driver of that growth. The e-commerce platform's gross merchandise value (GMV) surged by almost 70% in 2025, and its contribution to ByteDance's overall international business continues to rise. This overseas success story is part of a broader trend where ByteDance is expanding its global footprint, as seen with the recent global launch of its AI video model, Seedance 2.0, which notably skipped the US market.
ByteDance declined to comment when reached for this story. The company's aggressive AI spending mirrors a wider industry pivot, where tech giants are making huge bets on the future—sometimes at the expense of today's bottom line, a strategic shift also seen in OpenAI's recent moves away from consumer projects.