At least 700,000 US TikTok users have switched to the Chinese-owned app Xiaohongshu, or RedNote in English, according to the Guardian, while the US government is set to ban TikTok from Sunday. But if you see videos of RedNote’s CEO telling you how to use the platform, don’t be fooled. Some guy went viral this week for his RedNote welcome video, but people seem to think he’s the boss of the company. The video was even shown on local TV news in New York. But that’s just some random RedNote user from Canada.
Video, published earlier this weekit shows a man sitting at a desk and says he wants to make a quick video about Xiaohongshu “to introduce you to this platform”.
“So tip number one, we mostly use this platform to look for suggestions for restaurants, like malls, even for similar makeup tips,” the man says.
To be clear, he never claims to be the CEO of RedNote in the video, and it’s hard to see why people assumed that. The video goes on to explain that most people on RedNote speak Chinese, but feel free to speak English if you want.
“I want to say, never stop sharing your voice because platforms like Twitter, Instagram and TikTok, YouTube, Xiaohongshu should never be banned,” the man says. “Like people out there sharing their actual voice, like the LA fires, Gaza and so many other things, right?”
The man went on to emphasize that it is important to continue creating content on social media platforms.
“These are the voices of real people. More importantly, we never stop creating content. So yes, welcome to Xiaohongshu. Tell me what you think, let me know what interests you. I speak both Chinese and English so feel free to ask me any questions.”
The video is enjoyable and may have been so clear that it gives off an air of authority, like something a technology CEO might post, but he’s not a 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 news TV station Fox5 in New York posted a segment that ended with the claim that RedNote’s CEO had sent a welcome video. But it was clear from the way it was described that the news outlet had been duped.
“Now, Americans on RedNote are jokingly calling themselves TikTok refugees,” journalist Jennifer William said on Monday’s show. “RedNote’s CEO even made a video welcoming new English-speaking users to the app. He also encouraged them to never stop sharing their voice.”
“Voice and all that data,” answered the presenter with a laugh.
Who is this guy everyone mistakes for the CEO? His name is Jerry and he shares a RedNote account with his partner Dani, it said Business Insider. Jerry actually lives in Vancouver, Canada and apparently has no idea why everyone thought he was the CEO of RedNote. He even posted the video on a new account created for TikTok, FakeCEORealGF in an effort to let other people know that he does not control RedNote.
“I’m just another normal guy in Vancouver,” Jerry said. “I didn’t expect this post to go viral like this. And thank you for all the comments, but I want to clarify that I am not the CEO of RedNote. But whatever I said in that welcome video remains true. I really hope you can enjoy this platform.”
In the video, Jerry says he grew up in Shanghai and came to Canada ten years ago, while Dani says she is Chinese and grew up in California before moving to Canada.
@fakeceorealgf Hello people! It’s really us – we woke up to find that apparently Jerry went viral as an accidental CEO of red note so we made this reaction/clarification video to clear up the confusion 😂 He’s flattered but also very embarrassed about how it turned out to this misunderstanding. We decided to re-upload this video originally on TikTok (this is our only account) to spread the word – if you see this video, please help us share it with people 😂 From Jerry: I stand by what I saw in my original welcome video. For all the TikTok refugees coming to Red Note, we stand with all of you to make your voice heard! I am flattered by all the kind and polite comments and I hope TikTok refugees find a new home and friends to discover a new side of Chinese culture and community ❤️❤️🇨🇳 #regularnote #rednoteceo #tiktokrefugee #xiaohongshu #xhs #littleredbook #red book #regularmigration #rednotedobrodošli #slučajnoceo #tiktok #China
The ban on TikTok in the US is scheduled for January 19the day before Donald Trump’s inauguration, but the US Supreme Court is expected to give its opinion before that actually happens. Most court observers believe this based on oral arguments last weekSCOTUS will rule against TikTok and allow the ban to take effect. But nobody knows for sure until we get the verdict. And we don’t know exactly when that might come. It could be tomorrow or over the weekend at the last minute for all we know.
Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of Americans are giving RedNote a shot as one big screw-up by the US government. TikTok users really don’t like the idea of being told they can’t use the app they love, and migrating to apps owned by people like Mark Zuckerberg is extremely uncomfortable for those who see the Meta CEO as a Trump ally.
But US politicians are clearly worried about the move to RedNote. Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, a Democrat, expressed his frustration with the surge in RedNote applications in a post on Bluesky.
“I am concerned that Americans are flocking to numerous social media platforms owned by adversaries. We still need a comprehensive risk-based approach to assessing and mitigating the risks of foreign-owned applications,” Warner wrote Tuesday.
But America’s ruling class will have to get used to the fact that Americans don’t just roll over when their favorite toys are taken away. Because I can argue that China threatens the “way of life” that America holds dear all day long. But such a way of life seems increasingly desperate and tense, between the cost of living and the fact that a convicted criminal will become the most powerful person in the country. Again. The most powerful person in the country again.