Zhang Yiming Tops China's Wealth Rankings as AI Boom Lifts Fortune to $100 Billion

ByteDance founder Zhang Yiming has reclaimed the title of China's wealthiest individual with a net worth of $100 billion. The Hurun Research Institute released its annual ranking on Tuesday, showing a 43% jump in Zhang's assets. This figure sets a new record for the top spot on the list.

The surge in value is directly tied to the company's artificial intelligence sector. Rupert Hoogewerf, chairman of the Hurun Report, attributed nearly the entire increase to AI. He noted that ByteDance's Doubao assistant is the most widely used in China. The tech giant also operates the short video platforms TikTok and Douyin.

The wealth distribution at the top of the list has shifted away from traditional industries. Bottled water executive Zhong Shanshan fell to second place with $61 billion, a 23% decrease. Robin Zeng, head of battery maker CATL, holds the third position. The rise of AI startups is evident in the new entrants, including DeepSeek founder Liang Wenfeng at seventh and Cambricon chair Chen Tianshi at tenth.

AI now generates the majority of new billionaire wealth in the country. Hoogewerf stated that 160 people, or one in ten, now derive their fortunes from the technology. He described the economic activity as polarized, with gains concentrated in AI, semiconductors, and robotics. Meanwhile, wealth in consumer goods, real estate, and traditional manufacturing has shrunk. This dynamic mirrors the national economic data, where growth reached 4.5% in the third quarter.

The strain on legacy sectors is visible in the rankings of major conglomerates. Lei Jun, chairman of Xiaomi, saw his wealth halve to $25.1 billion, marking the largest drop on the list. Hoogewerf noted that consumer fortunes declined across the board. For the first time, no mainland property developer appears in the top 100, leaving only Hong Kong landlord families in that tier.

The report also reflects the current structure of ByteDance's U.S. operations. The American business was reorganized in January under a group of mostly American investors. This change followed years of national security reviews that threatened a ban. ByteDance maintains a minority stake in the U.S. entity, with Oracle listed as one of the investors.

The total count of Chinese billionaires has grown, with 1,529 individuals valued at more than 5 billion yuan. This represents a 6.6% increase from the previous year. In U.S. dollars, the number of billionaires rose by 155 to 1,176, a figure slightly below the 2021 high of 1,185.