BMW to deepen cooperation with ByteDance on AI application

German carmaker BMW said Friday it will deepen its collaboration with Chinese tech giant ByteDance, the owner of TikTok, to enhance artificial intelligence (AI) applications in marketing and customer service.

The partnership focuses on the application of AI in the automotive marketing ecosystem, by working with Volcano Engine, the cloud service platform of ByteDance. The overarching goal of the partnership is to enhance the intelligent car-buying experience and improve service efficiency for users.

According to the cooperation plan, Lingyue Digital Information Technology Co, Ltd., a BMW subsidiary and a key platform for the automaker's digital innovation in China, will leverage ByteDance's advanced large language model technology to deploy customized BMW-exclusive intelligent marketing tools.

"We are accelerating the integration of AI technology into all business areas, from R&D, production, supply chain to products, services and operations. The deepened collaboration with ByteDance represents a key implementation of our AI strategy," said Sean Green, president and CEO of BMW Group Region China.

The German company is actively expanding its presence in China, with approximately 460 local supplier partners in the country.

It is accelerating collaboration with Chinese technology partners, particularly in cutting-edge technologies such as large language models, generative AI and intelligent voice interaction.

"China has emerged as a global engine of innovation," said the senior executive. "Through collaboration with leading local technology partners in joint research and development and co-creation, BMW is leveraging its system integration expertise to advance local partnerships."

In March, BMW announced its cooperation with other Chinese tech giants, saying it would work with Alibaba to integrate large language model AI into its Neue Klasse models, and with Huawei to co-develop an in-car digital ecosystem tailored to the Chinese market.

BMW operates R&D centers in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenyang and Nanjing, together forming its largest R&D network outside Germany.