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At least 700,000 US TikTok users have jumped ship to a Chinese-owned app called Xiaohongshu, or RedNote in English, according to the Guardian, while the US government is ready to ban TikTok starting Sunday. But if you see videos about a RedNote CEO telling you how to use the platform, don’t be fooled. There’s a guy who went viral this week for his RedNote welcome video but people seem to think he’s the head of the company. The video was even shown on local TV news in New York. But this is just a random RedNote user from Canada.
The video, posted earlier this weekshowed a man sitting at a table saying he wanted to make a quick video about Xiaohongshu to “introduce you to this platform.”
“So tip number one, we use this platform to search for suggestions like restaurants, like shopping malls, even for make-up tips,” said the man.
To be clear, he never claimed to be the CEO of RedNote in the video and it’s hard to see why people would think that. The video goes on to explain that most people at RedNote speak Chinese, but you should feel free to speak English if you want.
“I want to say, don’t stop sharing your voice because a platform like Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok, YouTube, Xiaohongshu should never be banned,” said the man. “Like people sharing their real voice out there like the LA wildfire, about Gaza, and a lot of other things, right?”
The man continued by emphasizing that it is important to keep creating content on social media platforms.
“This is the real voice of the people. What’s more important is that we never stop creating content. Yes, welcome to Xiaohongshu. Let me know what your thoughts are, let me know what interests me. I speak Chinese and English so feel free to ask me any questions.
The video is pleasing and maybe it’s so candid that it gives off an air of authority, like something a tech CEO might post, but he’s not the CEO. RedNote was actually co-founded in Shanghai in 2013 by Miranda Qu, the current president of the platform, and Charlwin Mao, the current CEO, according to Reuters.
Local TV news station Fox5 in New York ran a segment that ended with a claim that the CEO of RedNote sent a welcome video. But it is clear from the description that the news outlet was fooled.
“Today, Americans on RedNote jokingly refer to themselves as TikTok refugees,” journalist Jennifer William said in a broadcast on Monday. “RedNote’s CEO even made a video welcoming new English-speaking users to the app. And he also encouraged them to never stop sharing their voice.
“The voice and all the data,” the anchor replied with a laugh.
Who is this person that everyone mistakes for the CEO? His name is Jerry and he shares a RedNote account with his partner Dani, according to Business Insider. Jerry actually lives in Vancouver, Canada and by all indications has no real idea why everyone thinks he is the CEO of RedNote. He even posted a video on a new account created for TikTok, FakeCEOrealGF in an effort to make it clear to other people that he does not control RedNote.
“I’m just a normal guy in Vancouver,” Jerry said. “I didn’t expect that post to go viral. And thanks for all the comments, but I want to make it clear that I am not the CEO of RedNote. But whatever I said in that welcome video remains true. I hope you enjoy this platform.”
Jerry says in the video that he grew up in Shanghai and came to Canada about a decade ago, while Dani says she is Chinese and grew up in California before moving to Canada.
@fakeceorealgf Hey guys! It’s just us – we woke up because Jerry seems to have gone viral as the accidental CEO of the red note so we recorded this reaction/clarification video to diffuse the confusion 😂 He was flattered but also very embarrassed about how this misunderstanding happened. We decided to reupload this video on TikTok (this is our only account) to spread the word – if you see this video, please help us share it for people 😂 From Jerry: I stand by what I see in my original welcome video. For all the TikTok refugees who came to Red Note, we stand with all of you to make your voice heard! I am flattered by all the kind and respectful comments and hope that the refugees on TikTok will find a new home and friends to discover a new side of Chinese culture and community ❤️❤️ 🇨🇳 #rednote #rednoteceo #tiktokrefugee #xiaohongshu #xhs #little book #redbook #rednotemigration #rednotewelcome #accidentalceo #tiktok #china
The US ban on TikTok is set for January 19a day before Donald Trump’s inauguration, but the US Supreme Court is expected to weigh in before that happens. Most court watchers believe that based on the oral arguments made last weekSCOTUS will rule against TikTok and allow the ban to be enforced. But nobody knows for sure until we get a decision. And we don’t know when that will happen. It could be tomorrow or it could be this weekend at the last minute, for all we know.
Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of Americans are giving RedNote a shot as a big fuck-you of the US government. TikTok users don’t really like the idea of being told they can’t use an app they love and the migration to apps owned by people like Mark Zuckerberg is especially bad for those who see Meta CEO as Trump’s ally.
But US politicians are clearly worried about RedNote’s pivot. Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, a Democrat, expressed his frustration at the surge in RedNote sign-ups in a post on Bluesky.
“I am concerned that Americans are exposed to so many enemy-owned social media platforms. We still need a comprehensive and risk-based approach to assessing and mitigating the risks of these proprietary applications. of foreigners,” Warner wrote tuEsday.
But America’s ruling class needs to get used to Americans not just rolling over when their favorite toys are taken away. Because they can say that China threatens the “way of life” that America loves all day long. But that way of life looks increasingly desperate and fraught, between the cost of living and the fact that a convicted felon is about to become the most powerful man in the country. Again. The most powerful man in the country AGAIN.
