ByteDance's Zhang Yiming overtakes Mukesh Ambani to become Asia’s 2nd richest person

Zhang Yiming, the founder of TikTok’s parent company ByteDance, has overtaken India’s Mukesh Ambani to become the second richest person in Asia.

According to a report by Bloomberg, a rise in ByteDance’s share valuation, coupled with the company’s advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) technology, has significantly increased Zhang Yiming’s wealth.

His net worth surged by $24.1 billion in a single day, bringing his total wealth to $92.8 billion, making him the second richest person in Asia and the 21st richest person in the world.

Overall, Zhang Yiming’s wealth has increased by $27.7 billion so far this year.

In contrast, Mukesh Ambani has lost $20.8 billion this year and now has a net worth of $86.9 billion, ranking him as the third richest person in Asia and the 25th richest in the world.

Meanwhile, India’s Gautam Adani remains Asia’s richest person with a net worth of $117 billion, placing him 17th globally.

ByteDance’s AI assistant and chatbot, Doubao, has also gained rapid popularity, with its user base exceeding 300 million.

Despite being among the wealthiest individuals in Asia and China, Zhang Yiming is known for maintaining a low-profile and private lifestyle, with limited public information available about his personal life.

Born in 1983 in Fujian Province, China, Zhang’s parents were government employees. His name is based on a Chinese saying meaning “to astonish everyone on the first attempt.”

He graduated in Software Engineering from Nankai University in 2005, where he also met his wife, and the couple married shortly afterwards.

In his own words, Zhang recalled joining a company called Kuxun after graduation in 2005 as one of its early employees, starting as a junior engineer and later managing a team of 40 to 50 people within two years.

He explained that although he initially worked in technology, he later became actively involved in product planning when issues arose, despite others advising him not to. He believed that a strong sense of responsibility and ambition encouraged him to take on multiple roles, which helped him gain valuable experience.

His exposure to business operations played a key role in the success of his later ventures.