ByteDance’s AI boom propels China’s Zhou into world’s richest list

One of China’s three women billionaires, the 64-year-old founder and chairwoman of Range Intelligent Computing Technology Group operates data centers that power ByteDance’s AI projects. Range Intelligent’s stock surged by 105% in 2024, pushing her net worth to US$7.7 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, which listed her for the first time.

Her ascent comes as Chinese billionaires recover their wealth after years of losses driven by a property crisis and President Xi Jinping’s push for common prosperity, newswire Bloomberg reported.

One of China’s first post-Cultural Revolution college graduates, Zhou started her career as a teacher in Hunan Province before moving into commerce. In 2000, at 40, she founded Tiantong Communication Network, a Beijing-based telecom company serving giant clients like China Mobile.

TikTok, a video sharing platform owned by China-based company ByteDance. Photo by Reuters

She entered the data center business in 2009 by establishing Range Technology Development before later restructuring it into Range Intelligent Computing Technology Group. Range Intelligent’s performance has soared, with government policies fostering AI infrastructure.

The company, which operates 61 data centers across major Chinese cities, reported revenues of 3.6 billion yuan (US$491 million) in the first half of 2024, a 112% year-on-year increase.

Neither Zhou nor Range Intelligent responded to Bloomberg’s requests for comment.