TikTok tests the waters for Bytedance’s Indian edtech plunge

China’s Bytedance, the most-valued startup globally, is laying the groundwork for an edtech invasion of India. From hosting events to wooing edtech content creators, Bytedance’s emissary TikTok is leaving no stone unturned

On 17 October, TikTok will officially launch #Edutok—its education channel—as a nationwide campaign

With #Edutok, TikTok kills two birds with one stone—it becomes more palatable to regulators while hitching its wagon to India’s thriving edtech market

Edutok is an early dipstick for TikTok parent Bytedance’s edtech expansion to India. Its actively mentoring edtech content creators to populate TikTok with their videos

In China, Bytedance has already launched or invested in around 10 edtech platforms since March 2018. But how much ground can 15 second videos cover?

Anand Prakash just got off TikTok. His messages sound jubilant.

Prakash, the academic head at live tutoring app Vedantu, just held his first live session on the video-streaming social media platform. “My gut feeling is this could work like live classes on YouTube,” reads his text. Vedantu’s math channel, which features one-minute-long videos on math tips and tricks, has garnered over 500,000 followers, as of October 2019.

The third-most downloaded app globally in the first quarter of 2019, China-based TikTok and its 15-second videos have taken India by storm. With over 200 million users in India, it is arguably China’s most popular consumer tech export.

AUTHOR

Olina Banerji

Based in Delhi, Olina writes about mega-trends in urban mobility, education, skilling and the environment, with a focus on how institutions and innovations can help cities grow sustainably. She is a graduate of the London School of Economics, and has worked previously with India Today and global non-profit Ashoka.

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