Zhang Yiming built ByteDance Ltd. into the world’s most valuable private company via a string of blockbuster apps like TikTok that challenged Facebook and other incumbents on their own turf. His latest target: Alibaba.
The 38-year-old AI coding genius, searching for ByteDance’s next big act, has set his sights on China’s $1.7 trillion e-commerce arena. The co-founder has hired thousands of staff and roped in big-name sponsors like Xiaomi Corp. impresario Lei Jun to drive what he calls his next “major breakthrough” into global business selling stuff to consumers via its addictive short videos and livestreams. That endeavor will test not just Zhang’s magic touch with app creation and ByteDance’s AI wizardry, but also investor reception ahead of one of the tech world’s most hotly anticipated IPOs.
May 9, 2021
Zhang Yiming built ByteDance Ltd. into the world’s most valuable private company via a string of blockbuster apps like TikTok that challenged Facebook and other incumbents on their own turf. His latest target: Alibaba.
The 38-year-old AI coding genius, searching for ByteDance’s next big act, has set his sights on China’s $1.7 trillion e-commerce arena. The co-founder has hired thousands of staff and roped in big-name sponsors like Xiaomi Corp. impresario Lei Jun to drive what he calls his next “major breakthrough” into global business selling stuff to consumers via its addictive short videos and livestreams. That endeavor will test not just Zhang’s magic touch with app creation and ByteDance’s AI wizardry, but also investor reception ahead of one of the tech world’s most hotly anticipated IPOs.
The Chinese video streaming site is trying to maintain its unconventional appeal and sense of community, as it embraces a wider audience. Early users say Bilibili is losing its original charm, but some analysts say there are no obvious alternatives. SCMP
It was the winter of 2012 and Kevin Lin was 13 years old. Like many children his age in China, he was obsessed with Japanese anime. And just like them, he got his fix on the Internet.
His latest discovery was a scrappy anime streaming site named Bilibili.
Becoming a member of the platform was nothing like signing up for YouTube. First, Lin had to ace a 100-question quiz testing his knowledge on anime and the site’s rules. He failed a few times before finally passing with the help of Baidu, China’s Google equivalent.