According to The New York Times, TikTok is facing a ban due to perceived national security threats from ByteDance (its Beijing-based parent company), and the Chinese owner of Lemon8 is pushing a new app called Lemon8.
Insider reports that Lemon8 is described by creators as a mix of Instagram and Pinterest. It is photo-based. According to the NYT, ByteDance sent out a recruitment message to Americans who are active on social media last week through the marketing companies they hired.
It stated that ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, invited you to be a launching creator for their new Lemon8 platform, before it officially launches in the United States.
According to the NYT, Lemon8’s goal was to become a global leader in social media. They cited TikTok’s dominance and noted that Lemon8 uses the same recommendation engine that TikTok uses.
ByteDance’s recruitment comes at a time when the Biden administration threatens to make TikTok divest from Chinese owners or face a national ban. Lemon8 can be downloaded on both the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. It has received thousands of positive reviews.
According to emails sent to creators by the NYT, ByteDance plans to launch a global promotion in May to attract more users. According to the NYT, Lemon8 claimed it had reached 5 million global users last year and has expanded to more countries.
Forbes reports that ByteDance monitored American journalists in 2022. CNBC reports that Chinese law permits the government to gather information from companies located in China for national security purposes.
Daily Caller News Foundation did not receive a response from ByteDance immediately.