ByteDance plans to spend 100 billion yuan, or about $14 billion, on Nvidia`s (NVDA) AI chips in 2026. That would be an increase from 85 billion yuan spent in 2025.

Most of the planned purchases would be directed toward Nvidia hardware. The South China Morning Post reported the spending would focus on Nvidia’s H200 graphics processing units.

The plan depends on Beijing approving the sale of H200 chips in China. Approval has not yet been granted for Chinese firms to buy the product.

If clearance is given, Nvidia would need to increase production of a China-tailored H200 model. Manufacturing would be handled with its partner Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company.

The Trump administration recently authorized exports of H200 AI chips to China under a controlled licensing system. The move marked a change from earlier U.S. export restrictions.

Despite U.S. approval, Chinese authorities have not formally approved the imports. Reports suggest access could be limited or discouraged to protect China’s domestic semiconductor industry.

ByteDance is pressing ahead with a large AI capital expenditure push. The company employs an internal chip design team of about 1,000 people.

That team has made progress on a new processor. However, it has not yet matched the performance of Nvidia’s chips.

Demand for computing power is rising across ByteDance’s businesses. These include TikTok, Douyin, its cloud unit Volcano Engine, and its large language models.

Doubao, the company’s chatbot, now processes more than 50 trillion tokens each day. That figure was about 4 trillion in late 2024.

Volcano Engine serves more than 100 enterprise customers. It is also set to be a leading AI cloud partner for China Central Television’s Spring Festival Gala.

In a separate report, Chinese technology companies have shown strong interest in Nvidia’s second-most powerful AI chip. They hope shipments can begin before the Lunar New Year.

Nvidia holds about 700,000 H200 chips in inventory. Chinese firms have ordered more than 2 million units for next year, prompting Nvidia to ask TSMC to raise output.

Beijing is weighing the use of advanced foreign chips against promoting domestic alternatives. These include products from Huawei Technologies’ Ascend unit, Moore Threads Technology, MetaX Integrated Circuits, and Cambricon Technologies.