ByteDance Investment Operations Research
Overview
ByteDance, the Chinese technology conglomerate and parent company of TikTok, operates a venture capital arm called Jinqiu Capital (锦秋基金). Jinqiu Capital is an AI-native early-stage venture fund that serves as ByteDance's strategic investment vehicle for emerging technology companies, particularly in artificial intelligence, robotics, and autonomous systems.
Investment Thesis
Jinqiu Capital operates under an AI-native investment philosophy, focusing exclusively on artificial intelligence and AI-adjacent technologies. The fund's thesis centers on identifying exceptional founders building AI-powered solutions at the earliest stages. They emphasize:
- AI-First Focus: Every investment must have meaningful AI/ML components at its core
- Founder-Centric Approach: Seeking founders with exceptional vision, deep technical expertise, and execution capability
- Early-Stage Conviction: The fund explicitly positions itself as a first institutional investor for 59% of their portfolio companies
- Long-Term Partnership: Active involvement beyond capital, providing talent, industry resources, and global investment network access
- Rapid Decision-Making: Fast, founder-friendly investment process with support for SAFEs and multi-round investments
Stage & Check Size
Jinqiu Capital operates as a true early-stage investor:
- Stage Focus: Primarily seed and early Series A
- Check Size: $1M - $25M USD per deal
- First Check: Frequently lead or co-lead first institutional rounds
- Follow-on Strategy: Aggressive follow-on investment approach to support companies through growth
Recent Activity & Portfolio
The fund has been actively deploying from what appears to be a substantial corpus. Recent investments in 2025-2026 include:
Notable Portfolio Companies:
- Unitree Robotics (宇树科技): Quadruped and humanoid robotics, reached unicorn status in 2025. Jinqiu led/co-led investments.
- Momenta (曼迹科技): Autonomous driving and AI perception company
- Astribot (星尘智能): Embodied AI/robotics company, Series A funding in Jan 2026
- Inkers (墨心科技): Embodied intelligence startup
- Stardust Intelligence: AI/robotics, received Series A funding in 2025
- D-Robotics (地瓜机器人): AI robotics platform by Yu Kai and Wang Cong
- Momenta: Autonomous driving AI
- Shengshi Technology (生数科技): AI infrastructure
- Ahead Form (首形科技): AI-powered form recognition
- OiiOii: AI creative tools
- IdeaFlow (造梦次元): Generative AI creative platform
Portfolio includes 60+ companies across AI infrastructure, robotics, autonomous systems, computer vision, and generative AI applications.
Team & Organization
Leadership:
- Yang Jie (杨洁): Founding Partner, leads AI investment strategy
- Zang Tianyu (臧天宇): Partner
- Zheng Xiaochao (郑晓超): Partner
- Liao Zhiyuan (廖智媛): Investor
- Shi Licheng (施立成): Investor
Investment Team:
- Huang Guowei (黄国威): Investor
- Lin Longjie (林龙杰): Investor
- Shi Yaqiong (石亚琼): Investor
- Xie Haoxiang (谢昊翔): Investor
- Zhou Xin (周欣): Investor
Total team size: 11-50 employees based on LinkedIn data
Geographic & Sector Focus
Geographic: Primarily China-focused with global investment capabilities and international portfolio companies. Headquarters in Beijing.
Sectors: Exclusively AI and AI-adjacent technologies:
- Robotics and autonomous systems (humanoid, quadruped, industrial)
- Computer vision and perception
- Autonomous driving technology
- Generative AI and LLM applications
- AI infrastructure and tooling
- Embodied AI systems
- AI-powered creative tools
Decision Process
Based on public information, Jinqiu Capital employs a rapid partnership-driven decision process:
- Speed: Founder-friendly, quick turnaround on investment decisions
- Flexibility: Support for SAFEs, convertible notes, and various investment structures
- Multi-round Support: Committed to following good companies through multiple rounds
- Founder First: All processes designed around founder needs and company velocity
Corporate Venture Context
As a ByteDance subsidiary venture arm, Jinqiu Capital benefits from:
- Access to ByteDance's technical expertise in AI, computer vision, and large-scale systems
- Distribution and integration opportunities for portfolio companies (TikTok, CapCut platforms)
- Global network through ByteDance's 120+ city presence and 150,000+ employees
- Strategic alignment with ByteDance's broader AI investments ($23B planned for 2026)
Lead Tendency
Jinqiu Capital explicitly positions itself as a first institutional investor and frequently leads or co-leads seed and Series A rounds. Their commitment to being "first VC backer" for majority of portfolio indicates strong lead inclination.
Notable Exits & Returns
Hollow Games acquisition by Take-Two is referenced as a successful exit from the ByteDance investment ecosystem, though specific Jinqiu Capital exit data is limited in public sources.
Founder Preferences
Jinqiu Capital seeks:
- Technical Depth: Founders with deep AI/ML expertise and technical credibility
- Vision & Conviction: Clear, compelling vision for how AI can solve real problems
- Execution Excellence: Demonstrated ability to build and ship products
- Founder-First Mindset: Those willing to move fast, iterate, and embrace founder-friendly terms
- Mission Alignment: Companies building meaningful AI capabilities, not just AI overlay
Investment Process
The fund emphasizes:
- Fast decision-making and founder-friendly processes
- Support for alternative funding instruments (SAFEs, notes)
- Multi-round commitment and active portfolio management
- Talent and resource network beyond capital
- Global investment cooperation