Overview of Zhang Yiming
Zhang Yiming is a prominent Chinese entrepreneur who is currently the founder and CEO of the Beijing-based social media platform ByteDance.ByteDance is the world’s most valuable startup and home to some of the world’s most popular apps, including TikTok.Yiming is one of the wealthiest individuals in China, but how much does he actually make?
Estimated Incomes
According to the Harvard Business Review, Zhang Yiming’s primary source of income is his equity in ByteDance.It is estimated that he has a stake in the company valued at least 5.3 billion US dollars. In 2018, it was estimated he made 1.4 billion yuan (around 200 million US dollars) that year.
By 2020, the company was valued at 75 billion US dollars, making Zhang Yiming one of the wealthiest of China’s tech entrepreneurs.
Pay Cuts
In 2018, Yiming announced that he and all of his employees, including himself, would take a 50% pay cut. The goal of the pay cut is to ensure that employees focus on their work instead of seeking raises or looking for better deals elsewhere.
Also in 2018, Yiming gave away stock options worth over 6 billion yuan (895 million US dollars) to hundreds of employees, reportedly handing out about 800 shares for each employee.
Contributions to China and the World
Yiming has focused a lot on the potential of his company to create large-scale impacts in China. In January 2018, Yiming pledged to invest 3 billion US dollars into an AI research lab, with the hope of developing Chinese-born AI technology.
Later that year, he was appointed as a trustee of The Nature Conservancy, becoming the first Chinese entrepreneur to join the non-profit organization.
The Road Ahead
For now, Yiming’s focus is on developing ByteDance into one of the largest tech companies in the world. In response to the US government’s ban on its popular app TikTok, Yiming has been busy negotiating a merger with US tech companies, such as Oracle, to further develop the app.
He is also focused on expanding ByteDance’s reach into new markets, such as India and Southeast Asia.
Criticism and Controversy
Yiming has also been at the center of some controversy. For instance, he has been accused of censoring content in China and of poor human resource management.
Yiming has also been criticized for treating employees unfairly. In 2018, several employees filed a court case against Yiming for unpaid bonuses. Yiming responded by issuing a statement denouncing the reports as “untrue or distorted”, and vowed to pay them their bonuses in full.
Yiming’s Personal Life
Yiming has kept a relatively low profile, despite his fame and success. Not much is known about his personal life. He is married to Tang Li, with whom he shares a son.
Yiming is a graduate of Nankai University’s School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering. He has stated that the main thing that drives him is the exploration of the unknown.
Investing Habits
Yiming has invested in several other companies. He is an investor in iQiyi, an online streaming service; Helis, a driverless car startup; and Youzu, a game developer. He has also invested in venture capital firms and cryptocurrency-related companies.
Yiming has recently been investing in artificial intelligence (AI) research. He has a team of 3,000 AI experts and data scientists at ByteDance, and he has also set up the Zhang Yiming AI Institute to promote intelligent technologies in China.
Philanthropy
Yiming is also a philanthropist who has donated to a number of charitable causes. He has donated large sums to education, health, disaster relief, and poverty-stricken areas in China. In 2020, he donated over 2 million US dollars to five Chinese hospitals for coronavirus relief.
Yiming is also involved in disaster relief efforts in Southeast Asia. In 2018, he donated 5 million US dollars to help victims of the floods in Thailand.
Charitable Endeavors
In 2017, Yiming launched the ByteDance Foundation in China. The foundation focuses on the development of education, science, and technology, as well as providing assistance to rural areas in the country. In 2019, the foundation donated 500 million yuan (72 million US dollars) to support education in underdeveloped areas.
In 2018, Yiming also donated 1 million US dollars to the China Youth Development Foundation, a charity that provides funding and support to China’s poorest children.
The Bottom Line
Given his success and undeniable impact on the tech industry, it is no surprise that Zhang Yiming is one of the wealthiest and most influential entrepreneurs in the world. While estimates of his net worth vary, it is clear that he has earned a considerable amount of money from the success of ByteDance.
Yiming has also demonstrated a commitment to giving back to society and his charitable endeavors have had a positive effect on people in China and beyond.
