While China’s ByteDance and its TikTok video app are getting a lot of buzz in the U.S., a smaller rival called Kuaishou has quietly become one of the most highly valued tech startups in the world.
Kuaishou (KWHY-shoh) has built a social network of more than 300 million daily active users in China—an audience three-quarters the size of that for its archenemy Douyin, ByteDance’s domestic version of TikTok. While Douyin has grown by feeding funny videos to bored urbanites, Kuaishou has instead fostered a devoted fan base in smaller cities and countryside with an emphasis on building an online community.
