Kwai vs TikTok: What Entrepreneurs Can Learn From Both Apps

Short-video apps like Kwai and TikTok have turned everyday video content into a business opportunity. From personalized recommendations to livestreaming and social commerce, both platforms offer insights into how digital products attract users and generate revenue.

But what makes their approaches different, and what can entrepreneurs learn from them? Comparing Kwai and TikTok reveals useful lessons in user engagement, content creation, monetization, and audience growth.

Whether you’re planning to build a short-video app or grow an existing digital business, understanding these strategies can help you make smarter product and business decisions.

Kwai vs TikTok: Understanding Their Business Strategies

Social Media Platforms like Kwai and TikTok share a similar foundation. Both allow users to create, watch, and share short videos, but their wider business ecosystems include content discovery, advertising, livestreaming, and commerce.

Kwai is part of Kuaishou, a Chinese technology company that operates content and social platforms. Its ecosystem combines short videos with livestreaming, community interactions, advertising, and e-commerce. Kuaishou’s business model shows how entertainment can connect with commercial activities, allowing creators and businesses to reach audiences through multiple formats.

TikTok, owned by ByteDance, is known for its personalized For You feed, which recommends videos based on user interests and interactions. Its business ecosystem includes advertising tools, creator partnerships, livestreaming, and TikTok Shop in supported markets. This allows businesses to reach potential customers through content rather than relying only on traditional advertising. 

Kwai vs TikTok comparison

Feature availability varies by country, so entrepreneurs should evaluate each platform’s local offering before using it as a business model.

The comparison reveals an important point. A successful video platform needs more than a feed full of entertaining clips. It needs a reason for users to return, a reason for creators to contribute, and a business model that can support continued growth.

Also Read: Whatnot vs TikTok Shop vs Instagram Live Shopping Analysis

7 Business Lessons Entrepreneurs Can Learn From Kwai and TikTok

1. Make User Experience Simple

People are more likely to try an app when they can understand how it works without a long learning process. TikTok makes video discovery central to the experience, while Kwai provides a straightforward way to watch and share short videos.

For entrepreneurs, the lesson is to remove unnecessary steps between opening a product and receiving value from it.

For example, a new social media app should make it easy to create an account, explore content, follow relevant creators, and upload a first video. A shopping app should help customers find products and complete purchases without unnecessary screens.

What entrepreneurs can do:

• Keep navigation clear and predictable.
• Make important features easy to find.
• Reduce friction during registration and onboarding.
• Test the app with real users to identify confusing steps.

A product does not need dozens of features to feel useful. It needs to solve its main problem well.

2. Use Personalization to Keep Users Engaged

TikTok’s For You feed is a clear example of personalized content discovery. Its recommendations can take account of interactions such as likes, comments, shares, completed views, and skipped videos. TikTok also considers information about the content itself. 

The business lesson is that users do not all want the same experience. Relevant recommendations can help people find useful content without having to search for everything themselves.

An entrepreneur developing a learning app, entertainment platform, or online marketplace can apply the same principle. The app could recommend lessons based on completed courses, products based on browsing activity, or videos based on a user’s selected interests.

What entrepreneurs can do:

• Collect only the data needed to improve the user experience.
• Let users choose interests during onboarding.
• Use relevant behavior to improve recommendations.
• Give users control over recommendations and personalization.
• Monitor whether recommendations improve engagement and satisfaction.

Personalization should help users find value, not simply keep them on the app for as long as possible. Privacy, transparency, and user control matter too.

3. Help Users Become Content Creators

Short-video platforms depend on a steady supply of content. Professional creators contribute, but ordinary users also need to feel comfortable making and sharing videos.

Kwai and TikTok both support video creation and sharing, giving users a way to participate instead of remaining passive viewers.

This offers an important lesson for entrepreneurs: users can become contributors to a product’s value.

For example, a fitness platform could let members share workout progress, a travel app could feature user-submitted travel clips, and a cooking community could allow users to upload recipes and demonstrations.

User-generated content can give people more reasons to participate and help a platform develop a wider range of material. However, it still requires moderation and quality controls.

What entrepreneurs can do:

• Make uploading and publishing content straightforward.
• Provide useful editing tools and templates.
• Encourage original contributions.
• Give creators clear feedback about their content’s performance.
• Establish rules for copyright, inappropriate content, and misleading posts.

The goal is not to turn every user into a professional creator. It is to make participation easy enough that people want to contribute.

4. Build a Community, Not Just an Audience

Views can bring attention to a platform, but community interactions can give users a reason to return. Comments, follows, livestreams, and direct interactions allow people to build relationships around shared interests.

Kuaishou’s business materials describe livestreaming as an interactive experience where viewers can engage with streamers and send virtual gifts. This illustrates how content consumption can develop into an ongoing relationship between creators and audiences.

Entrepreneurs can apply this idea beyond video-sharing apps. A niche community platform, for instance, could offer discussion spaces, member profiles, live sessions, and topic-based groups.

What entrepreneurs can do:

• Give users meaningful ways to interact.
• Help people find communities that match their interests.
• Recognize valuable creator contributions.
• Build tools that support conversations and repeat participation.
• Moderate harmful behavior to maintain a welcoming environment.

A strong community is not measured by comments alone. The quality of interactions and whether users feel comfortable participating also matter.

5. Develop Multiple Revenue Streams

Kwai and TikTok show how short-video platforms can generate revenue beyond advertising. Depending on the market, their business models can include livestreaming, brand partnerships, and social commerce.

Kuaishou’s 2025 financial results provide a clear example. The company reported RMB 142.8 billion in total revenue, with online marketing services contributing RMB 81.5 billion, livestreaming RMB 39.1 billion, and other services RMB 22.2 billion. These figures represent Kuaishou’s overall business, rather than Kwai’s international app alone.

Social commerce offers another example. In June 2025, TikTok reported that U.S. TikTok Shop sales had increased by 120% year over year for the period covered by its announcement. The company also reported more than 70 million products across over 750 categories on the U.S. platform. These figures illustrate the scale of its commerce offering, rather than TikTok’s overall revenue growth.

For entrepreneurs, the lesson is to identify revenue streams that fit their audience and product. A new video platform might begin with advertising or creator subscriptions, then consider livestreaming or commerce when there is enough user demand to support those features.

What entrepreneurs can do:

• Start with a revenue model that matches the product’s purpose.
• Explore advertising when the platform can offer value to advertisers.
• Consider subscriptions or premium features when users receive ongoing value.
• Test commerce features if users naturally discover products through the platform.
• Track revenue alongside user retention and customer satisfaction.

The goal is not to introduce every monetization option at launch. It is to build a sustainable business without damaging the user experience.

6. Adapt to Local Markets

A strategy that works in one country may not work equally well in another. Language, cultural preferences, payment methods, internet access, content interests, and local regulations can all influence how people use an app.

Kwai’s international business has included efforts to develop local content and creator communities. Its broader parent company, Kuaishou, also operates a substantial domestic content and commerce ecosystem. TikTok likewise serves audiences across different markets, with product and commerce availability varying by location.

Entrepreneurs can learn from this by treating localization as a product decision, not just a translation task.

For example, a short-video app entering a new market might support regional languages, feature local creators, adapt its content categories, and offer payment methods familiar to its intended audience.

What entrepreneurs can do:

• Research local audience behavior before launch.
• Support the languages customers actually use.
• Work with creators who understand the target market.
• Check local payment, privacy, advertising, and content regulations.
• Measure results separately for different markets.

Localization can help a business make its product more relevant, but it requires research and ongoing feedback rather than assumptions about an entire country.

7. Measure Engagement and Improve Continuously

Launching an app is only the beginning. Entrepreneurs need to understand what users do after downloading it, where they encounter problems, and what encourages them to return.

Short-video platforms can learn from signals such as watch time, likes, shares, comments, and video completion. For a new business, the right metrics will depend on its purpose.

A video platform might measure how often users return and how many creators publish regularly. An online marketplace might focus on product views, completed purchases, repeat customers, and transaction value.

What entrepreneurs can do:

• Track activation, retention, and repeat usage.
• Identify where users abandon important journeys.
• Test product changes with clear success criteria.
• Measure creator activity as well as viewer activity.
• Review customer feedback alongside analytics.

Do not optimize for a single number. More screen time, for instance, does not necessarily mean users are happier or that the business is more profitable.

The best metrics connect product performance with real user value and sustainable business growth.

How Entrepreneurs Can Apply These Lessons to a New App

The strategies used by Kwai and TikTok can inspire a new product, but entrepreneurs should not try to reproduce every feature of an established platform. A more practical approach is to start with a specific audience and a clear reason for people to use the app.

Choose a Specific Audience and Niche

Decide who the app is for and what need it will address. It could focus on regional entertainment, gaming videos, educational clips, fitness communities, or another clearly defined audience.

A focused starting point helps entrepreneurs test whether people want the product before investing in a broad feature set.

Prioritize the Essential Features

A first version of a short-video app might include:

• User registration and profiles.
• Video uploading and playback.
• A content feed and basic recommendations.
• Likes, comments, follows, and sharing.
• Reporting, moderation, and privacy controls.
• Basic analytics for creators and administrators.

Features such as advanced recommendation systems, livestreaming, virtual gifts, and in-app shopping can be added when user demand and the business model justify them.

Plan Infrastructure and Moderation Early

Video apps require more than a mobile interface. Video storage, encoding, delivery, bandwidth, security, and moderation can influence both cost and performance.

Entrepreneurs should also consider how the platform will handle copyright complaints, abusive behavior, spam, privacy requests, and unsafe content. These are core operational requirements, not optional additions.

Test the Business Model Before Scaling

Start by testing whether the target audience is willing to pay, engage with relevant advertisements, purchase products, or support creators through suitable features.

Use pilot results to determine which revenue opportunities deserve further investment. This reduces the risk of spending heavily on features before confirming that users need them.

Track Results and Improve the Product

After launch, gather user feedback and review engagement, retention, operating costs, and revenue. Use those findings to decide which features to improve, which problems to fix, and whether the product is ready to expand.

The goal is to build a product that serves a real audience and can grow without making the experience worse.

Kwai vs TikTok: Which Business Strategy Should Entrepreneurs Follow?

Neither platform offers a universal formula for every business. The right approach depends on the audience, market, available resources, and product goals.

Entrepreneurs interested in personalized content discovery can study TikTok’s recommendation-led experience. Those exploring the relationship between short videos, livestreaming, community interactions, and commerce can also learn from Kuaishou’s broader ecosystem.

A startup should select the ideas that support its own value proposition rather than copy an established app feature by feature.

Before choosing a strategy, consider these questions:

• Who is the target audience, and what problem will the app solve?
• What will make users return after their first visit?
• How will creators or other contributors add value?
• Which revenue model suits the product?
• What infrastructure, moderation, and operating costs will be required?
• How will success be measured beyond downloads?

Answering these questions can help entrepreneurs make more informed product decisions and avoid building features simply because a competitor has them.

Build Your Own Short-Video App With Oyelabs

Inspired by Kwai and TikTok? Oyelabs helps entrepreneurs turn their app ideas into digital products with solutions tailored to their business goals. Whether you want to build a short-video sharing platform, integrate livestreaming, support creator monetization, or explore social commerce, choosing the right features and technology is essential.

Our team can help you plan and develop a platform that fits your target audience, budget, and growth plans. From essential video-sharing features to monetization options, we can help you explore the right approach for your business.