Xiaohongshu App Downloads Surge
"RedNote" Rises as TikTok Faces U.S. Ban
Americans Seek Alternatives Amid Political Uncertainty
Chinese company ByteDance's social media platform TikTok is entering the final countdown to being banned in the United States. Without a political decision from the 47th U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who will take office next week, the TikTok app will no longer be usable in the U.S.
In response, Americans are turning to Xiaohongshu (小紅書), known as the Chinese version of Instagram, as an alternative. Yonhap News reported on the 14th, citing China's state-run Global Times and the U.S. Wall Street Journal (WSJ), about the rising popularity of Xiaohongshu.
Those who call themselves "TikTok refugees" have chosen RedNote, the international version of Xiaohongshu. On the evening of the 13th local U.S. time, it ranked first in free downloads on the Apple App Store. On the Google Play Store, it ranked 8th among social media apps.
RedNote is a popular TikTok competitor among young people in China, Taiwan, and other Chinese-speaking populations.
Its monthly users number about 300 million, a scale similar to the combined user base of TikTok and Instagram. Young urban women are the main users, exchanging lifestyle tips ranging from dating to fashion.
Yousef Abe, senior analyst at market intelligence firm Sensor Tower, told the WSJ, "Xiaohongshu has achieved something it has never done before."
The ban on TikTok in the U.S. is due to the TikTok Ban Act. In April 2023, the U.S. Congress passed the TikTok Ban Act, citing concerns that TikTok steals Americans' personal information and threatens U.S. national security. According to this law, if ByteDance does not sell TikTok's U.S. business rights to an American company, TikTok will be completely banned in the U.S. starting from the 19th.
However, Chinese authorities are reportedly strongly insisting that TikTok remain owned by its parent company ByteDance.
Charlotte Silverstein (32), a public relations officer living in Los Angeles, described downloading Xiaohongshu on the 12th amid growing chances of a TikTok ban as "an act of last resistance."
There are also signs of new friendships blossoming between the two peoples through Xiaohongshu. When a Xiaohongshu user living in Shanghai posted in English, "Welcome TikTok refugees," an American user responded in Chinese with "Thank you for the warm welcome."
However, the WSJ pointed out that it will not be easy for Xiaohongshu to replace TikTok, which has 170 million users in the U.S. alone. As of last month, only 1.3 million U.S. mobile users had downloaded Xiaohongshu.
Meanwhile, China is actively promoting Xiaohongshu's number one ranking in U.S. downloads. China continues to oppose the U.S. TikTok Ban Act, claiming it is an arbitrary suppression of companies under the pretext of national security.
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs also criticized the U.S. handling of the TikTok issue, stating, "The world will be able to see more clearly whether the so-called rules and order of the U.S. are truly beneficial to the world or only serve the interests of the U.S. itself."
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