Internet moguls are being held hostage by the entertainment system!

Chapter 455 Let ByteDance Develop AI
"AI?"

Zhang Yiming blinked, looking both surprised and speechless.

He knew that Chen Xiu's strategic plan for Douyin was to improve the upstream and downstream industrial chain before establishing an AI team.

Surprisingly, the same solution could actually be used by ByteDance...

Zhang Yiming questioned, "Baidu has invested so many resources in AI, but so far it hasn't made a splash. Can we do it?"

"Baidu must have gone in the wrong direction."

Chen Xiu moved her neck and said uncertainly.

Zhang Yiming asked curiously, "How do you know they've gone the wrong way?"

"Guess."

"...Let's get down to business, can we be serious?"

“I’m not being irresponsible! Look, Baidu has been betting everything on AI for over two years, and they haven’t produced anything. I can’t think of any other reason besides going in the wrong direction.”

Chen Xiu shrugged and said helplessly.

AI is a broad field with countless sub-fields. For example, Chat GPT is a chatbot model, Sora is a video model generator, and autonomous driving also falls under the category of AI.

Chen Xiu didn't know which direction Baidu had chosen, but judging from the results, if the entire company had been developing for two years and still couldn't produce anything worthwhile, then they must have encountered difficulties in the chosen direction.

Zhang Yiming pressed further: "Where do you think Baidu went wrong?"

"That's not important. You should focus on whether ByteDance's bet on the AI ​​sector is feasible."

"Since you have made this suggestion, it means you have already thought things through logically. If you don't explain it clearly, how can I know if it's feasible?"

"speak Now."

Chen Xiu raised his hand to comfort him. As he sorted out his thoughts, he caught a glimpse of Zhang Yiming's desk.

"Old Zhang, bring over the things on your desk for a moment."

"what?"

"That chaotic pendulum, and M&M's."

"..."

Zhang Yiming glanced at Chen Xiu hesitantly, suspecting that he was trying to use this as an excuse to steal his M&Ms, but he still got up and went to get the two items.

A can of colorful M&Ms, plus a T-shaped chaotic pendulum that never stops spinning.

Zhang Yiming couldn't fathom how these two things could possibly be related to what Chen Xiu was about to say.

Chen Xiu glanced at the two items that had been brought over, and first grabbed the M&Ms, making Zhang Yiming's eyelids twitch.

"Okay, to give you an example, this can of M&M's is like a database of bytes, where each M&M's represents tens of thousands of data points."

"Well, then what?"

"If we think of an AI chatbot as a more intelligent browser, you ask it a question, and it can directly retrieve the precise answer from the M&M's database and push it to you."

"This requires a precise recommendation algorithm..."

Zhang Yiming shut his mouth halfway through his sentence, and Chen Xiu gave him a teasing look.

The first key to ByteDance's success lies in its recommendation algorithm.

Douyin was able to break through the blockade of internet giants and carve out a path to success only by obtaining ByteDance's algorithm.

Is an algorithm a problem for other companies, but a problem for ByteDance?

After so many years of development, Toutiao's database already has sufficient data reserves.

In other words, ByteDance already possesses two of the three essential elements for the development of large-scale AI models.

Chen Xiu pointed to the chaotic pendulum that was still spinning next to him: "Besides data and algorithm push, the most important thing is computing power, or more precisely, high-end chips."

"This is indeed difficult."

Zhang Yiming lowered his head and nodded, feeling helpless about this matter.

Chen Xiu turned her head and stared at him without saying a word, just staring quietly.

A moment later, noticing the unusually quiet atmosphere, Zhang Yiming looked up at Chen Xiu, only to meet a pair of stern eyes.

"what happened?"

"If AI research and development weren't difficult, Baidu would have already done it. Would it be your turn?"

Chen Xiu said without any politeness.

Although he didn't know where Baidu's AI research and development had stalled, it probably revolved around algorithms and computing power, because they were number one in China when it came to data.

Despite having insufficient byte data, its algorithm is superior, giving it an advantage over Baidu.

The computing power issue is about the same for everyone; the standards for what can be purchased are already set...

When Chen Xiu questioned Zhang Yiming, his body trembled, but the worry on his face remained.

"Baidu has been researching for two years but hasn't come up with anything. If we start from scratch, we don't know how much effort it will take."

"The fact that you haven't figured anything out means we're all on the same starting line, so what's there to be afraid of? ByteDance's algorithm recommendation is something Baidu doesn't have, so from that point of view, you still have an advantage!"

Chen Xiu's expression melted away like spring snow, and she launched a continuous stream of encouragement at Zhang Yiming.

Douyin doesn't have the extra energy to develop AI right now, while ByteDance has funds but can't find a direction for development.

Given this, Chen Xiu felt that having ByteDance take charge of AI research and development would have a much better return on investment than Douyin.

After all, he knows the future development direction and can also understand Open AI's research direction and general program architecture.

With two powerful connections—being both a shareholder and a director of ByteDance—it would be a waste for ByteDance not to research AI. Under Chen Xiu's constant encouragement and explanation of the advantages and disadvantages, Zhang Yiming's heart pounded, and a surge of passionate idealism began to well up within him.

"So, according to you, even without the most advanced chips, we can make up for our shortcomings through the advantages of algorithms?"

"I can only say that there is such a possibility."

Chen Xiu didn't make any grand pronouncements. He wasn't a technical expert; understanding the principles was enough for him. The specific operations would require the technical team to experiment continuously.

However, since the emotional value conveyed through words was insufficient, Chen Xiu compensated by prying open Zhang Yiming's mouth and pouring chicken soup into it.

"Spotify's CTO, Andrea, initially set the music click latency at 500 milliseconds, but the boss was still not satisfied and demanded that Andrea achieve zero latency. What was the result?"

Zhang Yiming paused for a moment, then quickly recalled this widely circulated story in the internet technology circle.

"Andrea led his team to complete a brand new protocol and even applied for a patent for it, achieving almost zero latency music playback at the cost of a streaming server."

"The advantages you have now are much greater than those Spotify had back then."

Chen Xiu unscrewed the M&M's jar and popped a red chocolate bean into her mouth.

Zhang Yiming clasped his hands together, his right foot began to tap unconsciously to the beat, and his eyes darted left and right as he pondered the feasibility of ByteDance's development in the direction of AI.

Surprisingly, the worry that had been on his face had disappeared, leaving only careful and thoughtful consideration.

Time slipped away quietly as Chen Xiu ate M&Ms and Zhang Yiming pondered, until…

You actually ate my M&Ms?

"What's wrong?"

As she spoke, Chen Xiu popped another one into her mouth.

Zhang Yiming squinted, his nostrils flared, and he exhaled, then grabbed the M&M's jar and poured it into his mouth.

Chen Xiu smiled as she watched this scene, knowing in her heart that Zhang Yiming had already come to a conclusion.

After replenishing his sugar levels and feeling his mind clear, Zhang Yiming turned to Chen Xiu and said, "Let's try out the AI ​​chat model."

"Ha, this direction is much more promising than Duoshan and making mobile phones."

"Ahem, the two directions you mentioned don't require much investment, but AI requires a lot."

"As long as there is potential, capital will not be afraid to invest."

Chen Xiu handed the lid of the M&M's jar to Zhang Yiming, got up from the sofa, and raised her hand to check the time.

"OK, I have something to do, I'll be going now."

"Huh? You're going back to work at Douyin?"

"It's not Douyin, it's a movie I invested in that's having its premiere press conference, I'm just going to make an appearance."

"Um……"

Seeing Zhang Yiming's hesitant expression, Chen Xiu stopped and glanced at him.

"Just say what you have to say, don't beat around the bush."

"Hmm, it's about time you settled down in the entertainment industry, right? After all, if you get involved in any scandals after TikTok goes public, it won't have a good impact."

"Who would dare spread rumors about me?"

"..."

"However, what you said makes sense. Just these two years! After I finish filming one movie (completing the system task and gaining physical enhancement), I can probably retire from the entertainment industry."

"You're going to make movies again?"

Zhang Yiming stared wide-eyed at Chen Xiu. After a moment of astonishment, his expression suddenly changed, and the familiar Mickey Mouse smile appeared on his face.

"The movie you're making, it's not going to be a biopic, is it? Will I have a role? If so, remember to send me the script; I want to participate in writing it myself..."

"I'm not that narcissistic."

Chen Xiu said speechlessly, "He's so young, why is he making a personal autobiography?"

Zhang Yiming was taken aback, then said regretfully, "Tsk tsk, what a pity. If you were making a biopic, you could save the trouble of finding a male lead and just direct and star in it yourself. I could even make a cameo appearance. Wouldn't that be much more advantageous?"

"If you have any ideas, you can authorize me to have a biography made about you."

"Um... I'll pass."

"Tsk, what a pity."

The exact same words and tone came out of Chen Xiu's mouth, directly returning them to Zhang Yiming verbatim.

In response, Zhang Yiming simply lowered his head dejectedly and did not reply.

As someone with social anxiety, he's fine with egging Chen Xiu on to make a cameo appearance in her biographies, but he absolutely cannot allow himself to be involved in a biopic.

Chen Xiu was also aware of this, and after making a joke, he took his leave.

Meanwhile, backstage at the premiere of "The Wandering Earth," director Guo Fan was surrounded by a dozen actors and crew members dressed in spacesuits.

Having just finished filming on location for "The Climbers" and rushed over to attend the premiere, Wu Jing asked, "Director Guo, will President Chen be attending the premiere?"

"Forehead……"

A dozen pairs of eyes were fixed on Guo Fan, whose face was filled with uncertainty.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Guo Fan glanced discreetly at Meng Ziyi, who was mingling in the crowd, hoping to get a hint from her.

Seeing this, Meng Ziyi hesitated for a moment before nodding slightly.

Guo Fan breathed a sigh of relief and said with absolute certainty, "Don't worry, President Chen will definitely come!"

(End of this chapter)