Image from Reuters
The hot news this week is definitely the inevitable TikTok ban. There have been calls for the US Supreme Court to postpone the ban, but the app will shut down soon if that doesn't pan out. Seeing the writing on the wall, American users have begun to find alternatives.
The impending TikTok ban has caused its US users to turn to another Chinese app - REDNote. Officially called 'Xiaohongshu' in China, which means "small red book", this is a lifestyle-centric app described as "Instagram meets Pinterest". The app was previously popular mostly among Chinese-speaking users, including those from Malaysia.
The Chinese people on Xiaohongshu are now asking Americans for help with their English homework LMAOOOO pic.twitter.com/nAL3cedS85
— Gina Darling (@MissGinaDarling) January 13, 2025
It was also reported that some migrating users have left messages like "Take my data!" on their TikTok accounts, referring to the Biden administration's claim that the app allows the Chinese government to collect data on US citizens. Of course, TikTok and its owner ByteDance have denied this claim.
In related reports, language learning app Duolingo has seen a 216% increase in Mandarin learners from the US since December 2024. This massive spike is also attributed to US TikTok users joining in protest of the upcoming TikTok ban. Looks like the move to ban TikTok has more or less backfired, causing Americans to switch to other Chinese apps instead.
Learning Mandarin out of spite? You're not alone.
— Duolingo (@duolingo) January 15, 2025
We’ve seen a ~216% growth in new Chinese (Mandarin) learners in the US compared to this time last year. https://t.co/9hzwBxfTgD pic.twitter.com/qWM9f5oFYA
What do you think will happen next? Share your thoughts in the comments on our Facebook page, and stay tuned to TechNave for more news like this.
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