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ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, has increased its campus recruitment efforts for 2026 by approximately 25% compared to last year, amid a rising shortage of tech talent. The company recently launched its annual hiring campaign, aiming to attract over 5,000 graduates across eight categories, including research and development, product management, and operations, according to Securities Times.
Employment opportunities in research and development have grown by 23% year over year, with the strongest demand in algorithm, front-end, and client-side development roles. Key divisions experiencing high hiring interest include Douyin, ByteDance’s Chinese short-video platform; its e-commerce division; the B2B tech brand Volcano Engine; the workplace productivity platform Lark; and the video editing application CapCut. These units are actively recruiting for positions such as product managers and data analysts.
Volcano Engine has also started its own campus recruitment drive for 2026. This platform, which offers cloud computing and AI services to businesses, is hiring R&D talent in areas like front-end, back-end, client-side development, algorithms, big data, testing, and operations. Additionally, six non-R&D roles are available, including sales, solutions architecture, product management, design, operations, and marketing.
Other major technology companies, including Alibaba Group and Tencent, are also launching campus hiring initiatives to attract more artificial intelligence experts. This trend reflects a nationwide shortage of skilled AI professionals across industries like internet services, e-commerce, smart hardware, and gaming, as highlighted in a 2024 talent migration report by Maimai.
The increased demand for AI talent is also driving up salaries. Between January and February, the highest-paying tech roles posted were large language model algorithm engineers, earning an average of CNY68,051 (about USD9,465) per month; AI engineers, earning CNY60,768; and algorithm engineers, earning CNY52,381, according to data from Maimai Gaopin Talent Think Tank.
ByteDance’s TopSeed Talent program, designed for exceptional PhD candidates and research interns specializing in AI, offers a daily stipend of CNY2,000 (roughly USD278), significantly above industry standards. With a typical 20-day work month, interns can earn up to CNY40,000.
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