ByteSplit AI Pharma Valuation Reaches $1 Billion, First Round of Funding Aiming for $200 Million Successfully Lands in Shanghai and Introduces a Prestigious Advisory Board

According to Think Tank Beating monitoring, ByteDance's AI pharmaceutical business unit has initiated a spin-off and independent financing. The new company is valued at around $1 billion, with the first round of funding reaching nearly $200 million and is set to be based in Shanghai. After this spin-off, ByteDance will still hold a controlling stake in the new entity, with the original AI pharmaceutical core team, core algorithms, technology platform, and existing early-stage drug pipeline assets being fully integrated into the new company.

The new company is led by ByteDance's AI Pharmaceuticals team established in 2021, with former Volcanic Rock Investment Managing Director Liu Kai as the head. Liu Kai leads a team of 50 people based in Shanghai, Singapore, and San Jose, USA. To align with the biotechnology R&D process, the new company has brought in a prestigious Scientific Advisory Board, including former President of Xinda Biotech Liu Yongjun, and former Chief Scientist of Amgen Ji Ma, among other industry experts, covering the entire chain from target validation to clinical development.

In terms of technology development, the team released the molecular structure prediction model Protenix and Seedfold in 2025, iterated to Protenix-v1/v2 in 2026, and also introduced the protein binder design tool PXDesign. In the drug pipeline validation phase, the team established the AI pharmaceutical platform Anew Labs and unveiled the IL-17 small molecule project at the American Immunology Association Annual Meeting in April 2026, achieving, for the first time globally, the use of small molecules to block three dimers of the IL-17 family (AA/AF/FF).

Following the spin-off, the new company will have more flexibility in decision-making to attract top talent and advance R&D in line with biotechnology trends. After the split, the new company will continue to receive underlying computational power support from the Volcano Engine. The investors for the current round of funding have not been finalized yet, with several existing ByteDance shareholders and top domestic USD funds already in discussions.