TikTok parent company launches Google Gemini AI Nano Banana rival called Seedream 4.0

AI

TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, has unveiled its latest artificial intelligence tool, Seedream 4.0, positioning it as a direct competitor to Google DeepMind’s Gemini 2.5 Flash Image—widely known as “Nano Banana.” The launch highlights ByteDance’s growing focus on AI-driven creative platforms as global demand for generative media continues to expand.

Features
According to ByteDance’s Seed department, Seedream 4.0 introduces a new architecture designed to accelerate raw image inference by more than ten times compared to earlier versions. The tool merges the text-to-image capabilities of Seedream 3.0 with the editing functions previously offered through SeedEdit 3.0. Early users have reported that Seedream allows precise adjustments through simple text prompts, enabling faster and more accurate edits.

The company also claims that Seedream 4.0 surpassed Gemini 2.5 Flash Image in internal tests on its benchmark, MagicBench, with better performance in prompt adherence, alignment, and aesthetics. However, these results have not been released in an independent technical report.

Availability and pricing
Seedream 4.0 is currently accessible in China via ByteDance’s Jimeng and Doubao AI applications, while enterprise customers can use it through the company’s Volcano Engine cloud platform. On the generative media site Fal.ai, Seedream 4.0 is priced at US$0.03 per generated image, making it slightly cheaper than Google’s Gemini 2.5 Flash Image, which costs US$0.039. For bulk usage, ByteDance is offering the same $30 fee per 1,000 generations as Seedream 3.0.

Competition
ByteDance’s move comes as competition in AI media tools intensifies in China and abroad. Domestic rivals such as Tencent Holdings, Kuaishou Technology, and Tsinghua University-backed start-up Shengshu AI (creators of video generator Vidu) are also expanding rapidly. Vidu recently introduced an international feature allowing generation from multiple reference images, underscoring how quickly the field is advancing.

Google’s Nano Banana, meanwhile, has gained traction through viral 3D figurine trends on social media, highlighting the tool’s playful and shareable appeal. With Seedream 4.0, ByteDance is betting on speed, cost-effectiveness, and integrated editing to carve a stronger place in this crowded market.