BYTEDANCE Ltd.’s sales surged in 2023 to more than US$110 billion, according to people familiar with the matter, potentially overtaking arch-foe Tencent Holdings Ltd. The world’s most valuable startup’s growth broadly matched the 30% pace it managed in 2022, when it reported sales in excess of US$80 billion, the people said. The owner of TikTok and Chinese twin Douyin this year cemented its position as one of China’s internet leaders, alongside Tencent and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., leveraging the popularity of its social video services to expand into e-commerce and other spheres. At roughly 30%, ByteDance would outpace the projected growth of far more established social media rivals Meta Platforms Inc. and Tencent, which is estimated to generate US$86 billion in revenue this year. It’s not clear how ByteDance, which as a private firm has far fewer disclosure and audit requirements versus its listed rivals, performed in profitability this year. While its internal numbers haven’t been independently audited, the sheer scale suggests the social media juggernaut in 2023 became one of China’s largest corporations by revenue. Its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization surged 79% to about US$25 billion in 2022, the Financial Times reported in April, citing investors briefed on the number. ByteDance is banking on its Chinese home base to bankroll a global and business expansion in 2024. In China, Douyin is morphing to become an all-in-one platform with built-in features for food orders, flight tickets and hotel reservations, encroaching on the main territory of Alibaba and delivery leader Meituan. Abroad, TikTok is following that strategy to blend videos and shopping in markets like the United States and Indonesia, where it has taken control of GoTo’s e-commerce unit Tokopedia. The US$1.5 billion deal, which marks one of ByteDance’s biggest takeovers in recent years, allows TikTok to restart its online retail service after months of scrutiny by the Indonesian government. Longer term, it remains to be seen if ByteDance can continue to challenge the major incumbents on their turf or make its mark in artificial intelligence. (SD-Agencies) | 