The other Chinese apps taking the US and UK by storm

TikTok, the astir fashionable escaped app successful the US, has successful caller days been making headlines not for its contented but for alleged links to the Chinese Communist Party.

Its boss, Shou Zi Chew, appeared earlier US politicians astatine Congress wherever helium fielded hostile questions astir Chinese genitor institution ByteDance and however overmuch entree China has to the app's data.

But the level is acold from the lone Chinese-owned mobile app to conquer Western markets.

Analytics steadfast Apptopia estimates that different 3 of the apical 10 escaped mobile apps successful the US are besides owned by Chinese firms. Two of them are besides among the astir downloaded successful the UK.

So what are these apps and what makes Chinese ones truthful successful?

Video editing app CapCut is often pitched arsenic a companion exertion for TikTok contented creators and it was downloaded 13 cardinal times successful February alone, according to Sensor Tower.

The video editing instrumentality is optimised for mobile editing connected the spell and offers a scope of features designed to marque your videos spell viral, similar adding fashionable songs, filters and peculiar effects.

CapCut is besides owned by TikTok's genitor company, ByteDance.

Shein is simply a planetary manner marque was founded successful 2012 and present boats a astir $15 cardinal valuation, according to Forbes.

It was founded by Chinese billionaire Chris Xu and is headquartered successful Singapore.

A speedy hunt of the #Shein hashtag connected TikTok and Instagram volition aboveground hundreds of videos from fashionable influencers boasting of their caller #Sheinhaul. It uses societal media to people GenZ users with hundreds of caller products regular astatine low-cost prices.

It's been little than a twelvemonth since this buying app debuted successful the US but it rapidly outpaced Amazon and Walmart.

The online superstore sells everything from apparel to electronics and allows consumers to bypass warehouse stores and bargain straight from the Chinese manufacturer.

The prices are truthful debased that galore Americans were searching "is Temu legit" aft the institution ran an advertisement during this year's Super Bowl.

The institution is headquartered successful Boston, MA, but it is simply a subsidiary of PDD Holdings, a Chinese-owned online retail elephantine that specialises successful direct-to-consumer products.

The occurrence of Chinese apps successful the US is partially down to the fierce contention that exists successful their home marketplace wherever US apps are banned, experts say.

"The tech companies from China person had specified an aggravated play of contention astatine location that has made them arsenic bully oregon better, successful immoderate ways, than American apps," said Zeyi Yang, a writer and researcher for the MIT Review who specialises successful Chinese technology.

These Chinese companies person besides been leaders successful processing proposal algorithms that are highly tailored to conscionable the needs of users, specified arsenic those utilized by TikTok and instant messaging app WeChat.

TikTok is the archetypal Chinese-owned app to bask large occurrence successful the planetary market, but US lawmakers and nationalist information experts person cautioned that Chinese-owned apps could beryllium susceptible to information privateness breaches and censorship from the Chinese Communist Party.

This aforesaid interest has led the European Commission, the UK and Canada to prohibition TikTok from the phones of authorities employees.

"How the US and different antiauthoritarian countries code the situation of Chinese apps similar TikTok breaking extracurricular of China has truly profound consequences for escaped code and the state of accusation globally," said Paul Scherer, writer of the publication Four Battlegrounds: Power successful the Age of Artificial Intelligence.

US-based tech firms similar Apple person fought lengthy tribunal battles to artifact authorities requests for their user's data, but Mr Scherer said nary specified channels beryllium successful China.

"At the extremity of the day, if the Chinese Communist Party tells [a Chinese-owned company], they person to bash something, they don't person an option", helium said.

TikTok brag Shou Zi Chew sought to reassure lawmakers astir information concerns by explaining determination is simply a "firewall" to support Americans.

A connection sent to the BBC by TikTok said US idiosyncratic information was extracurricular the scope of overseas governments. The BBC besides reached retired to the different apps for comment.

Mr Scherer says that until US lawmakers walk broad information privateness laws, immoderate app could beryllium susceptible to information breaches, nary substance which state owns them.

"There is simply a information of a genu jerk absorption that thing Chinese is bad," helium said.

"I deliberation radical should beryllium sceptical of each apps. People springiness up a batch of information connected their phones, without afloat knowing what they're accepting, what accusation that institution is pulling, oregon however they're utilizing it."