China’s Bilibili plans global expansion with major changes to take on YouTube

Bilibili, China’s YouTube, has relaunched its international app in a latest push for global expansion.

To gain a global footprint, the app is working on an English-language website which is expected to coming soon designed to attract non-Chinese creators and users.

The company is also actively hiring people for positions in key global markets, including the US, Japan, Mexico, Turkey and Brazil. The other significant changes include the removal of ID verification and development of AI-powered content moderation systems.

The new international app eliminates previous requirements for identity verification, such as passports or ID documents, making it easier for global users to sign up.

With the latest effort of going public, Bilibili is positioning itself as a platform to capture the Gen Z audience along with plans to develop a marketplace for international creators to secure sponsored brand deals.

The platform is also posting the content of major Western creators including MrBeast on its main Chinese-language site which has 376 million monthly active users globally.

The expansion could also challenge the dominance of YouTube while bringing forth various issues related to moderation and data security for the company.