Beijing. ByteDance founder Zhang Yiming has become China’s richest man thanks to his company’s expansion into the artificial intelligence (AI) field. A new list by the Hurun Research Institute shows that while the wealth of the technology sector is increasing, the consumer market and real estate sector are under pressure.
According to Hurun, the number of Chinese with assets of more than five billion yuan increased by 6.6 percent compared to last year to 1,529. According to calculations based on US dollars, the number of billionaires has also increased by 155 to 1,176.
According to Rupert Hoogewerf, president of Hurun, 160 people on the list, or about 10 percent, have acquired wealth from AI. ByteDance’s ‘Dubao’ has become the most used AI assistant in China. The same company is also the operator of the popular short video platforms Dooin and TikTok.
Bottled water entrepreneur Zhong Sansan dropped to second place after his wealth fell by 23 percent to 61 billion US dollars. Robin Zheng, the head of the world’s largest company that produces batteries for electric vehicles, is in third place. Liang Wenfeng, founder of AI company Deepsic, is ranked seventh and Chen Tianxi, chairman of AI chip maker Cambricon, is ranked tenth.
According to Hurun, while the wealth of entrepreneurs in the AI, semiconductor and robotics sectors has increased, the wealth of consumers and real estate sector businessmen has decreased. Lei Jun, chairman of Chinese electronics maker Xiaomi, has seen his wealth halve to $25.11 billion. For the first time, no real estate developer based in mainland China has made it to the top 100 richest list.
As the AI and electric vehicle industry expands due to government support, small businesses are affected as consumers cut spending. The long recession in the real estate market has also weakened domestic demand.
China’s economy grew by 4.5 percent from July to September compared to the same period last year. China is targeting economic growth of 4.5 to 5 percent this year. This is slightly less than last year’s five percent increase. -ap