TikTok owner ByteDance tests metaverse-like social network with new app Party Island
- Paiduidao, currently open only to users with an invitation code, is designed to let users interact in a virtual community
- ByteDance denies that the app is linked to the metaverse, a concept that is gaining traction in the tech world
ByteDance, owner of short-video sharing app TikTok and its Chinese sibling Douyin, has launched a social app in China that allows users to interact in a virtual community through avatars, as interest around the metaverse continues to grow.
While the functions of the app named Paiduidao, meaning “party island”, appear to fit the common description of the metaverse, which usually refers to a network of three-dimensional virtual worlds where people can interact, a Douyin representative said it “has nothing to do with the metaverse”, adding that the app is currently in beta testing by a small group of users and requires an invitation code to access.
The app, developed by ByteDance’s wholly-owned subsidiary Beijing Shi Qu Wu Xian Technology Co Ltd, launched earlier this week on iOS and Android app stores in China. It features a logo of two animated characters leaning against each other, along with the slogan: “no man is an island”.
While the app is not fully operational, it was the 77th most downloaded iOS social app on Friday, according to data tracking firm App Annie.
Paiduidao marks the latest attempt by ByteDance to crack China’s social media market and challenge Tencent Holdings’ ubiquitous WeChat app, which is installed on almost every smartphone in the country.