Tech Giant Develops Multiple AI Large Model Products with Digital Humans as Key Focus - Digital RMB Industry Investment Potential Analysis Report
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ByteDance is secretly developing multiple AI products including multimodal digital humans
Multiple insiders have revealed that ByteDance is secretly developing several products in the field of AI large models, including multimodal digital human products, AI-generated images, and AI-generated videos. One insider mentioned that they saw a demo of ByteDance's multimodal digital human product in the second half of last year and found it quite impressive. Additionally, it has been learned that ByteDance's video editing app, Jianying, formed a closed team several months ago to secretly develop AI products. Currently, the team remains in a highly confidential phase, and the products under development have not yet been launched.
According to Jiemian News, on February 28, ByteDance was reported to be secretly developing multiple products in the AI large model field, including multimodal digital human products, AI-generated images, and AI-generated videos.
One insider disclosed that they saw a demo of ByteDance's multimodal digital human product in the latter half of last year and felt it was quite promising. Further reports from Jiemian News indicate that ByteDance's Jianying app established a closed team several months ago to covertly develop AI products. The team is still in a strict confidentiality phase, and the products under development have not been released.
Commentary: AVIC Securities points out that GPT has brought about an intelligent transformation, driving the rapid development of the virtual digital human industry. The advancement of the virtual digital human industry is closely tied to breakthroughs in underlying technologies. The industry can be divided into four stages based on AI technology and infrastructure advancements: the budding stage, exploration stage, initial stage, and growth stage. After the emergence of GPT-4 in 2023, digital humans have evolved toward greater intelligence, convenience, refinement, and diversity, entering an accelerated growth phase. It is believed that, on one hand, AI has optimized the production process of digital humans, significantly reducing production time and lowering training and operational costs, making large-scale production feasible. On the other hand, with AI enhancement, digital humans can achieve intelligent interaction, greatly improving user experience and engagement, endowing them with a true soul and enabling personalized, 'warm' communication. This expands the application boundaries, leading to widespread use in industries such as entertainment, e-commerce, education, and government and enterprise services.
Huatai Securities stated that the country currently places high importance on supporting industry development, with a favorable policy environment. The virtual digital human industry is in a rapid development phase, and with AI empowerment, it is expected to enter a new stage driven by AI, characterized by tooling, systematization, and low costs.
In terms of companies, Orient Securities mentioned the following: 1) Virtual digital human solution providers: Tianyu Digital Technology, Jebsen Technology, and Tiandi Online; 2) Leading influencer live-streaming e-commerce agencies: Yaowang Technology; 3) E-commerce marketing/operational service providers with digital human business layouts: BlueFocus, SMZDM, Zhewen Interactive, and Sanrenxing.
The rapid rise of emerging industries and their substantial economic value have also highlighted the current pain points in digital human copyright protection. Leveraging deep technical expertise and experience in the digital content industry, Vobile Group has partnered with the China Copyright Protection Center and the School of Media and International Culture at Zhejiang University to pioneer research and development in 'Digital Human Copyright Verification and Protection.' The initiative aims to address digital human rights protection from the perspective of copyright verification and registration.
A representative from Vobile Group's 'Digital Human Copyright Verification and Protection' project noted that, compared to creative works, the uniqueness of digital humans is widely recognized. There is an urgent need for copyright verification and protection, but the task is complicated by their triple attributes. First, digital humans represent an unprecedented fusion of creativity and technology, which demands higher standards for protection technologies and approaches. The digital yuan (with the temporary international abbreviation 'e-CNY') is a digital form of legal tender issued by the People's Bank of China. It is operated by designated institutions and exchanged with the public, based on a broad account system that supports loosely coupled bank accounts. It is equivalent to physical cash and coins, carries value characteristics and legal compensation status, and supports controlled anonymity.
There are two key points about the digital yuan: first, it is a digital form of legal tender; second, it is equivalent to physical cash and coins. The digital yuan is primarily positioned as M0, meaning circulating cash and coins. It serves as a digital payment instrument (M0) and will coexist with physical RMB for the long term, mainly meeting public demand for digital cash and promoting inclusive finance.
Recently, the General Office of the State Council forwarded the 'Measures on Restoring and Expanding Consumption' issued by the National Development and Reform Commission, which mentioned strengthening digital consumption. Industry experts believe that as the digital yuan pilot progresses steadily and application scenarios continue to expand, a range of replicable models covering both online and offline use have emerged. This is expected to play a greater role in stimulating household consumption and unlocking consumption potential.
The redemption rate is the primary 'KPI' for consumption vouchers, referring to the proportion of the total amount of vouchers used relative to the total issued. For example, if an activity issues 1 million yuan in vouchers and users redeem 800,000 yuan, the redemption rate is 80%. Since the digital yuan pilot began, most consumption vouchers issued via digital yuan have achieved redemption rates exceeding 90%, with some regions even reaching 99%.
Over the past two years, many regions in China have issued consumption vouchers in various forms to stimulate spending, leveraging fiscal subsidies as a financial lever to boost consumption. However, some areas have seen low redemption rates, resulting in limited effectiveness of fiscal funds in driving consumption. Experts suggest that the high redemption rates of digital yuan-based vouchers can better harness fiscal funds to stimulate consumption. Currently, the digital RMB pilot program has expanded to 26 regions across 17 provinces, with new application scenarios continuously "unlocked," thereby increasing the circulation volume of digital RMB. Yi Gang, President of the China Society for Finance and Banking, previously stated that as of March 2023, the total balance of digital RMB wallets in pilot areas reached 8.67 billion yuan, with cumulative transaction amounts of 891.86 billion yuan and 750 million transactions processed.
As one of the first pilot cities for digital RMB, Shenzhen has achieved new breakthroughs by launching the promotion of digital RMB applications in prepaid business sectors. By deploying smart contracts on digital RMB wallets, solutions can be provided for prepaid consumption scenarios such as beauty cards and gym memberships, preventing merchants from misusing funds and safeguarding user rights.
During the early stages of the digital RMB pilot, participating regions conducted multiple rounds of consumer subsidies centered around themes like "promoting consumption" and "low-carbon travel." This has accumulated mature operational experience in using digital RMB for direct fiscal transfers and encouraging consumption, demonstrating its capability to support various levels of government in implementing consumer subsidies.
According to a representative from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), the digital RMB hard wallet introduced for the Chengdu Universiade marks the first large-scale issuance of physical hard wallets under open international sporting event conditions.
The newly launched digital RMB hard wallet features the Universiade mascot Rongbao in a running pose as its core design element, highlighting Chengdu's vibrant and progressive city spirit. ICBC staff explained that the digital RMB hard wallet is particularly suitable for small-scale consumption scenarios. The wallet itself is secure and anonymous, fully protecting personal privacy while providing a convenient digital RMB payment experience for both domestic and international event attendees. Guangdong's Meizhou successfully implemented digital RMB for salary payments in July this year. By the end of May, Meizhou had opened 151,000 individual digital RMB wallets and 12,100 corporate wallets, processing 511,900 transactions totaling 102.05 million yuan. The city has enabled digital RMB payments at 29,400 merchant outlets, covering various便民scenarios like fuel payments, medical fees, tuition, and utility bills.
Since the beginning of this year, Nanjing's financial institutions have innovatively expanded digital RMB applications. Data shows that by the end of June, the city had opened 1.419 million individual wallets and 82,000 corporate wallets, with 6.111 million transactions worth 11.75 billion yuan. This includes 3.323 million消费transactions totaling 440 million yuan, placing Nanjing at the forefront of provincial adoption metrics.
Digital RMB Industry Market Opportunities Analysis
During the pilot phase, many regions conducted multiple rounds of consumer subsidies using digital RMB, which gained recognition from governments and consumers alike.
Industry experts note that digital RMB消费vouchers achieve higher redemption rates, effectively stimulating consumption. As digital RMB offers broader usability than traditional vouchers, consumers perceive it as "real money," leading to stronger spending willingness.
Looking ahead, professionals believe digital RMB's technical and operational advantages will amplify its role in promoting consumption and serving the real economy. Simultaneously, consumer subsidies are expected to further increase digital RMB usage frequency. In the long run, the establishment and protection of digital human rights require joint efforts from all sectors of the industry to maintain the healthy development of the virtual digital human market. Fubo Group stated that it hopes to collaborate with industry and academic institutions to promote active exchanges and cooperation with influential copyright protection organizations, thereby advancing the development of digital human copyright and protection.
With technological advancements and innovations in digital human interaction, content presentation is gradually being reshaped, expanding from the IP field to more scenarios such as short videos, news distribution, e-commerce, and education. Additionally, virtual humans can exist as digital assets similar to NFTs or virtual identities in the metaverse. Undoubtedly, whether it's digital human IP or the value they create, they should belong to the digital content asset domain and inherently possess the right to protection.
Driven by immense market potential, the establishment and protection of digital human rights will become an unavoidable focus for the entire industry. The new industrial development opportunities brought by digital humans will also serve as a significant motivation for IP holders and platforms to support digital human rights and protection.
The digital RMB industry report provides a detailed analysis of the current development status, competitive landscape, and market supply-demand dynamics of China's digital RMB industry. It also examines the opportunities and challenges faced by the industry from the perspectives of policy, economic, social, and technological environments.
Additionally, the report highlights the operational status and development patterns of key enterprises. It reveals potential market demands and opportunities, offering accurate market intelligence and scientific decision-making support for strategic investors and corporate leadership. It also serves as a valuable reference for government departments.