ByteDance is expanding beyond its social media base, signing a deal with manufacturer Smartisan Technology to develop a smartphone. In a statement, a ByteDance spokeswoman said a smartphone had been part of Smartisan’s development plans before the deal it made with ByteDance. The device has reportedly been in development for seven months and the Chinese company is said to have bought Smartisan patents. Smarttisan's CEO Wang Xiaodong told Reuters that his firm was working on a smartphone based around "blockchain technology" which would be able to store data without any central authority. Expansion beyond social media has also seen the company hire staff from a company that produces AI-generated music.
ByteDance is expanding beyond its social media base, signing a deal with manufacturer Smartisan Technology to develop a smartphone. The device has reportedly been in development for seven months and the Chinese company is said to have bought Smartisan patents. Smarttisan's CEO Wang Xiaodong told Reuters that his firm was working on a smartphone based around "blockchain technology" which would be able to store data without any central authority. Expansion beyond social media has also seen the company hire staff from a company that produces AI-generated music.