BEIJING (CHINA) – TikTok owner ByteDance is making a Clubhouse-like app for China, said sources familiar with the matter, as its global success inspires a rush of copycats in the country.
Umpteen number of similar apps have been introduced in the past month, and it saw a gain of momentum after Clubhouse was blocked in China in early February.
New offerings include Xiaomi Corp revamping its Mi Talk app into an invitation-only audio service, which had professionals as its target last week. More are currently under development, according to industry executives.
ByteDance’s plans are still in the nascent stage, said two sources who were not authorised to speak to media and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Talks on TikTok and ByteDance on Clubhouse had generated interest in the genre from ByteDance executives, which includes CEO Zhang Yiming, said one of the sources.
Clubhouse has grown to such level that it can host up to 8,000 people per chat room. It witnessed discussion between Tesla Inc Chief Executive Elon Musk and Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev, which further boosted user numbers. This has in turn helped drive home the potential of audio chat services.
However, similar apps in China are likely to take on Chinese characteristics with a capacity to accommodate censorship and government oversight.
Nasdaq-listed Lizhi Inc’s Zhiya app, which was launched in 2013, is one such example.
The app requires real name registration, which according to Lizhi CEO Marco Lai is a key factor in China. The company also recruits staff to listen to conversations in every room and makes use of artificial intelligence tools to weed out “unwanted” content, including pornography or politically sensitive issues.
Lizhi’s Lai said setting aside politics, there was plenty of room for audio chat apps in China.
He said, “Adults in China do not like to express their views in public, we have been taught to keep a low profile since we were young. A good approach in China, though, is entertainment, you invite everybody to have fun.”
Inke Ltd, best known for its livestreaming platform, introduced a similar app, Duihuaba, this month employing venture capitalists, fashion critics and other celebrities to play the host in various conversations.
However, it abruptly withdrew the app two weeks after its debut, saying that it required further improvements without elaborating.