06:26 AM EDT, 06/15/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Baidu ( BIDU ) is being considered by ByteDance as a potential supplier of its Kunlunxin artificial intelligence chips, Reuters reported Monday, citing two unnamed sources familiar with the matter.

The company is evaluating the processors for inference work to support its Doubao chatbot as it expands its user base, and is simultaneously in discussions to buy at least 50,000 chips from Shanghai-based startup Iluvatar CoreX this year, the news outlet quoted the sources as saying.

A finalized contract with the startup would make it the third primary domestic graphics processing unit provider for ByteDance behind Huawei and Cambricon, according to the report.

The details of the prospective agreements remain preliminary and are still subject to changes, Reuters quoted the sources as saying.

Baidu ( BIDU ), ByteDance, and Iluvatar CoreX did not immediately respond to MT Newswires' request for comment.

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