ByteDance, the Chinese tech giant behind the popular social media platform TikTok, has dismissed an intern for "maliciously interfering" with one of its internal AI projects.
The incident, which surfaced on Chinese social media over the weekend, has drawn significant public attention and fueled speculation about the company’s internal operations.
In response to the widespread rumors, ByteDance issued a statement downplaying the situation, clarifying that some of the claims had been exaggerated.
"The individual was an intern with the advertising technology team and has no experience with the AI Lab," ByteDance said.
"Their social media profile and some media reports contain inaccuracies.
Despite public speculation about potential damage to the company’s AI systems, ByteDance emphasized that its core AI projects, including the Doubao chatbot—a ChatGPT-like model that is China's most popular AI chatbot—remained unaffected.
The company added that its commercial AI models and online operations were not disrupted by the intern’s actions.
ByteDance also denied reports that the interference caused over $10 million in damage by disrupting an AI training system made up of thousands of high-powered graphics processing units (GPUs).
In addition to terminating the intern, ByteDance informed the individual’s university and relevant industry associations about the misconduct.
ByteDance is known for its cutting-edge algorithm development and significant investments in artificial intelligence.
Along with the Doubao chatbot, it has rolled out other AI-powered tools such as Jimeng, a text-to-video generator.
The company remains a leader in leveraging AI across its various platforms, including TikTok and its Chinese counterpart, Douyin.
This incident highlights the sensitivity surrounding AI projects within major tech companies as they continue to develop and refine these critical technologies.
Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith
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