Xiǎo (小) Hóng (红) Shū (书), when Americans choose to entrust their data to China

[mdabuhasan]

RIP TikTok, long live Xiaohongshu! The US Supreme Court on Friday rejected TikTok’s request to suspend a federal law that would have banned it in the United States starting this weekend unless the app divests itself of its Chinese owners. However, the app’s Chinese ownership doesn’t seem to bother the average American citizen. Many users, who describe themselves as “TikTok refugees,” are migrating en masse to Xiǎo (小) Hóng (红) Shū (书), which translates to “little red book .” In just two days, more than 700,000 new users have joined Xiaohongshu , according to a source close to the company . According to Sensor Tower , it has become the highest-ranked social app on the Google Play Store since January 15. An impressive jump from 162nd place last year to first place this year.


A particular name that doesn't seem to put people off...

Xingyin Information afghanistan consumer email list Technology's app was launched in 2013 as "Hong Kong Shopping Guide." Originally designed in Shanghai as a shopping platform for women, Xiaohongshu has become one of the most popular short-video apps in China, with more than 300 million users as of July 2024, TechCrunch reports . Much of this success is due to an algorithm that prioritizes content based on users' personal interests, similar to TikTok. According to Chinese media reports , the app's name is a reference to the colors of the founder's former university, Stanford, as well as his former employer, Bain Capital. However, as NPR and the Washington Post point out, it's hard not to draw parallels with the "Little Red Book," the collection of quotes by Mao Zedong, the communist leader. On Google Play, the app is translated as RedNote, while on the App Store, the name remains in Chinese characters.

A camouflaged instrument of soft power?

The first step to effective soft power is to encourage language learning. This is what RedNote has managed to accomplish with its millions of new users, by offering an app exclusively available in Mandarin. Many Internet users are now sharing videos of themselves practicing the language after migrating to the app.


According to Duolingo , the app saw a 216% increase in new Mandarin learners in the US compared to the previous year, with a particularly sharp increase in mid-January, coinciding with RedNote's surge in adoption.