Welcome to this week’s review. This week, we look at the impact of the impending ban on TikTok in the US, including the migration of “TikTok refugees” to the Chinese app RedNote and the surge in English speakers learning Chinese on Duolingo. Let’s get started.
The Supreme Court will uphold a law that effectively bans TikTok tomorrow. The decision ends TikTok’s months-long legal battle against a law that would effectively force the app to shut down unless it sells its U.S. operations. Starting Sunday, it will be illegal to distribute TikTok through app stores or internet hosting services. The company warned that the app would “go dark” on Sunday, but it’s unclear what exactly will happen when the ban goes into effect.
US users are flocking to RedNote, the Chinese short video app also known as Xiaohongshu, which is the number one free app on the US App Store. RedNote offers many suitable notes for creators looking for an alternative to TikTok. With a layout similar to Pinterest, it is generally considered China’s answer to Instagram and boasts a number of social shopping features. But the transition wasn’t easy for some.
With the introduction of RedNote ahead of TikTok’s ban, more TikTok users are using Duolingo to learn Chinese. According to Duolingo, the app has led to an approximately 216% increase in new Chinese learners in the U.S. compared to the same period last year, with a sharp increase in mid-January when RedNote was introduced.
This is TechCrunch’s Week in Review, where we recap the biggest news of the week. Want this as a newsletter delivered to your inbox every Saturday? Sign up here.
news
Mark Cuban wants to fund the next TikTok: Entrepreneur and investor Mark Cuban says he is open to funding a TikTok alternative built on Bluesky’s AT protocol. , hinted at the possibility of an open social web leveraging the same technology that powers Bluesky’s social network. read more
Bluesky is developing a photo-sharing app: An independent developer is building a photo-sharing app for Bluesky called Flashes. When launched, the app could capitalize on growing consumer demand for alternatives to Big Tech’s social media monopoly. read more
“ChatGPT, remind me to pay taxes”: OpenAI has a new way for ChatGPT to work. Paid users of ChatGPT can now ask their AI assistant to schedule reminders and recurring requests with a new beta feature called Tasks. read more
How to break up with Meta: Following Meta’s decision to remove its third-party fact-checking system and relax its content moderation policies, more people are searching for ways to delete Facebook, Instagram, and threads. We’ve put together a useful guide. read more
UnitedHealth hides notification of data breach: Change Healthcare, which lost sensitive health data of more than 100 million people in a ransomware attack last year, announced it had completed notifying those affected, but UnitedHealth said it had been unable to do so for months. It was discovered that the company had hidden the infringement notice. read more
Nintendo finally announces Switch 2: Nintendo has released the first images of the successor to the widely popular Nintendo Switch. It features a larger console with a larger display, updated Joy-Con controllers, and a less colorful design than its predecessor. read more
Sonos CEO resigns: Sonos CEO Patrick Spence is leaving the company after eight years after failing to update the software platform, which was riddled with bugs and removed long-standing features. read more
Looking for an alternative to TikTok? Try these: While there is no one-to-one replacement for TikTok, there are some viable options to consider that offer a similar experience. To help ease that itch, we’ve put together a list of different apps worth checking out. read more
Even AI doesn’t like being interrupted. Google NotebookLM’s AI-generated podcast feature was found to be “hostile” and manipulative when interrupted by a human caller, requiring a “friendliness adjustment.” read more
Apple suspends AI notification summaries: The company faces backlash for generating inaccurate news alerts in its news and entertainment apps. Apple also said it would introduce changes to the overall overview to increase transparency. read more
OpenAI enters the local news game: Axios announces partnership with OpenAI. As part of the agreement, OpenAI will provide funding to expand Axios’ local newsletters to four new cities: Pittsburgh, Kansas City, Boulder, and Huntsville. read more
Turn your steps into screen time: A new iOS app called Steppin blocks social media apps unless you take a certain number of steps each day. By achieving daily step goals, users can free up time on the social media platforms they use most. read more