Introducing ByteDance Seedream V5.0 Lite Edit on WaveSpeedAI

ByteDance Seedream 5.0 Lite Edit Is Now Live on WaveSpeedAI

The next generation of AI image editing has arrived. WaveSpeedAI is excited to announce that ByteDance Seedream 5.0 Lite Edit is now available on our platform—bringing ByteDance’s latest breakthroughs in intelligent image editing, identity preservation, and creative style transfer directly to your workflows.

Seedream 5.0 Lite Edit builds on the foundation of its predecessor with meaningful upgrades where they matter most: sharper facial fidelity, more stable non-edited regions, better understanding of short or abstract prompts, and support for combining up to 14 reference images in a single edit. Whether you’re creating stylized portraits, reimagining characters in new environments, or producing content at scale, this model delivers a noticeable step forward in both quality and control.

What Is Seedream 5.0 Lite Edit?

Seedream 5.0 Lite Edit is ByteDance’s lightweight image editing model from the Seedream 5.0 family, launched in February 2026 as part of the Seed team’s push toward unified multimodal generation. While the full Seedream 5.0 suite introduced deep-thinking capabilities and real-time web search integration, the Lite Edit variant focuses on what creative professionals need most: fast, high-fidelity image transformations driven by natural language prompts and reference images.

The model operates on a simple principle—upload one or more reference images, describe the edit you want in plain text, and receive a professionally transformed result. Behind the scenes, Seedream 5.0 Lite Edit uses an advanced identity retention architecture that preserves facial structure, skin tone, lighting conditions, and color palette while applying only the changes you specify. ByteDance specifically improved small-face rendering and skin texture restoration in this release, addressing two persistent pain points in AI image editing.

In the competitive landscape of early 2026—where models like OpenAI’s GPT Image 1.5 and Google’s Nano Banana Pro are setting new benchmarks—Seedream 5.0 Lite Edit carves out a strong position as a purpose-built editing tool with exceptional face preservation at an accessible price point.

Key Features

Multi-Image Reference Editing One of the most powerful capabilities in Seedream 5.0 Lite Edit is multi-reference support. Combine elements from multiple source images by referencing them as “Figure 1,” “Figure 2,” and so on in your prompt. This enables complex compositing, character fusion, and scene construction that single-reference editors simply cannot match.

Superior Face and Identity Preservation Facial features—eyes, jawline, proportions, and skin tone—remain consistent even through dramatic style transformations. ByteDance specifically enhanced portrait processing in the 5.0 release, delivering more accurate skin texture restoration and stronger reference adherence compared to Seedream 4.5 Edit.

Natural Language Editing with Intelligent Intent Recognition Describe your edit in plain English, and the model intelligently interprets your intent. Seedream 5.0 Lite Edit handles both detailed instructions and short, abstract prompts effectively. The built-in Prompt Enhancer can automatically refine your descriptions for even better results.

Stable Non-Edited Regions A critical improvement over previous versions: areas you don’t want changed stay untouched. Local edits and replacements maintain stability in surrounding regions, eliminating the drift and subtle distortions that have historically plagued AI editing tools.

Lightweight and Fast The Lite architecture is optimized for speed without sacrificing output quality. Quick iterations are practical, making it ideal for exploring creative directions before committing to a final concept.

Flexible Output Sizing Specify custom output dimensions or let the model match your reference image’s aspect ratio automatically. The model supports high-resolution output for production-ready deliverables.

Real-World Use Cases

Style Transfer and Character Reimagining Transform portraits into cyberpunk, anime, fantasy, oil painting, or any aesthetic you can describe. The model preserves the subject’s identity while applying dramatic visual transformations—perfect for concept art exploration, social media content, and creative portfolios.

Creative Compositing Combine subjects and elements from multiple reference images into cohesive scenes. Place a person from one photo into the environment of another, blend artistic styles across sources, or merge product imagery with lifestyle photography.

E-Commerce and Product Visualization Generate consistent product variations with different backgrounds, lighting conditions, and styling contexts. Maintain product accuracy while creating diverse catalog imagery that would otherwise require multiple photoshoots.

Social Media and Marketing Content Create eye-catching, on-brand visual content at the pace social media demands. Produce dozens of variations from a single reference photo, each tailored to different platforms, audiences, or campaigns.

Concept Art and Rapid Prototyping Explore visual directions quickly by iterating on reference images with different style prompts. The Lite model’s speed makes it particularly well-suited for early-stage creative exploration before committing to a direction with higher-resolution workflows.

Getting Started on WaveSpeedAI

Using Seedream 5.0 Lite Edit on WaveSpeedAI is straightforward:

1. Upload your reference images — add one or more images containing the subjects or elements for your edit
2. Write your edit prompt — describe the transformation you want, using “Figure 1,” “Figure 2” to reference specific uploaded images
3. Set output size (optional) — specify dimensions, or leave blank to match the reference image’s aspect ratio
4. Generate — submit and download your edited image in seconds

For API integration, the process is equally simple:

import wavespeed

output = wavespeed.run(
    "bytedance/seedream-v5.0-lite/edit",
    {
        "prompt": "Transform Figure 1 into a cyberpunk style portrait with neon lighting",
        "images": ["https://example.com/portrait.jpg"],
    },
)

print(output["outputs"][0])

Pricing: $0.035 per generated image—no hidden fees, no complicated tiers.

Why WaveSpeedAI?

Running Seedream 5.0 Lite Edit on WaveSpeedAI gives you advantages that matter in production:

• No cold starts: Your requests begin processing immediately—no waiting for infrastructure to warm up
• Fast inference: Optimized infrastructure delivers results in seconds, not minutes
• Affordable pricing: Professional-grade image editing at a fraction of traditional retouching costs
• Production-ready API: Integrate directly into existing workflows with a clean REST API

Transform Your Creative Workflow

Seedream 5.0 Lite Edit represents a meaningful evolution in AI image editing. ByteDance has addressed the real pain points—facial drift, unstable edits, limited reference support—while keeping the model lightweight enough for rapid iteration. For creative professionals, marketers, and developers building visual pipelines, it’s a tool that delivers commercial-quality results without commercial-grade complexity.

Ready to see what Seedream 5.0 Lite Edit can do? Try it now on WaveSpeedAI and experience the next generation of AI-powered image editing.