Why Yu Hao of Dreame Suddenly Criticized Xiaohongshu? Users Say "The Algorithm Narrowed My Horizons" - Platform Reportedly Responded
Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book) faced strong criticism yesterday from Yu Hao, founder and CEO of Dreame Technology. He accused the platform of becoming a battleground for public opinion, with content diffusion controlled by algorithms. He labeled it a "very toxic platform" with problematic values and a profit model, even claiming the algorithm "intentionally promotes wrongdoing." Users echoed his concerns about algorithmic bias and information silos. Xiaohongshu offered a general response regarding the challenges of combating AI-generated misinformation.
Text | Zhang Ao, "BUG" Column
Why did Yu Hao suddenly attack Xiaohongshu? Sources reveal that since 2024, over ten thousand pieces of content related to Dreame have appeared on Xiaohongshu, including malicious rumors and coordinated negative campaigns, which are difficult to completely remove. Because of this, Yu Hao posted his first message on his Xiaohongshu account in August of last year. He then began to frequently "surf" the platform, responding to rumors about Dreame in the comment section, though he now says, “I don’t reply much anymore, I can’t keep up.” According to the "BUG" Column, Yu Hao’s posting frequency has noticeably decreased in the past month, with more focus on sharing polished promotional videos.
On social platforms, many users agree with Yu Hao’s statements, believing that Xiaohongshu’s “algorithm wrongdoing” is objectively present. They say, “This platform, which should be open and inclusive, makes me feel my horizons are narrowing due to the algorithm’s irrationality,” “This will become increasingly rigid in the long run, and I’m afraid of feeling like everyone agrees with me,” and “It really is terrible!”
Xiaohongshu has not responded to these accusations. At an AI governance communication meeting today, a platform representative told the "BUG" Column, “After the popularization of AI technology, the cost of creating fake content is indeed decreasing. Objectively, there will be more and more AI-generated fake news in the future, and this trend exists. Combating rumors has always been a difficult problem for major platforms. This is a key area we need to overcome in AI governance. We currently have a certain ability to identify hotspot-related fake information that many people are concerned about.”
“It’s a very terrible platform.”
Recently, Yu Hao “fired” at Xiaohongshu by forwarding a picture on social media: “I strongly agree with this blogger’s statement.”
The picture shows a blogger named “Hawen” stating: “There are big problems with Xiaohongshu. Originally, photos and text were meant to showcase beauty, but now it has become a battleground for public opinion. The user base is very extreme, and the product lacks a share button, with content diffusion completely controlled by the algorithm.”
He further stated that the app’s echo chamber is very hidden, with one-way information flow and extremely solidified circles, constantly amplifying extreme emotions and biased views.
Subsequently, Yu Hao reiterated that Xiaohongshu is a very terrible platform with a terrible social value orientation. “I will not take any information about our products that is fed back on Xiaohongshu as a reference. This is a platform with a toxic value system and profit model!”
“Xiaohongshu is a platform that mobilizes the dark side of human nature, relying on comparison, showing off, and exaggeration. I think the platform should have values and should not make money by doing evil.”
Just 13 minutes later, Yu Hao added another comment, stating that when suing bloggers for spreading rumors on Xiaohongshu, the platform should also be sued. “Everyone is afraid of this platform, which is why it pushes various unverified fake news so recklessly.” After posting three messages, he also emphasized in the comment section: “Xiaohongshu’s algorithm intentionally promotes wrongdoing.”
In response to Yu Hao’s “bold statement,” some users chimed in in the comments: “After using it for a long time, I really feel that the information cocoon is very serious, and I can’t receive information from different viewpoints,” “I’ve never liked this app,” “This platform has fundamental problems, full of showing off, hypocrisy, selfishness, and small favors,” “When I search for information, it’s all ads, and I can’t find what I want.”
Some users say Xiaohongshu “narrowed my horizons.”
As early as August 18th of last year, Yu Hao posted his first message on his Xiaohongshu account. He then began to frequently “surf” the platform, responding to rumors about Dreame in the comment section, and was once called the “CEO with the most human touch.”
For example, regarding the widely publicized “断指计划 (severed finger plan)” at Dreame, Yu Hao responded: “It’s a rumor. The truth is that we generally don’t allow salary increases to be too high when people first join the company; we immediately promote and raise salaries when they achieve results, and then maintain long-term stability. The people around me have been with me for a long time, and we’ve all come this far together!”
For example, regarding the question of “When will Dreame make a sports camera?” Yu Hao also said: “We’re already working on it, you haven’t understood at all.” When faced with netizens joking “Are you not busy enough at work?” Yu Hao said: “You come and arrange some for me?”
As of now, Yu Hao’s Xiaohongshu account has 93,000 followers, with a total of 348 posts, and 102,000 likes and collections. However, according to the "BUG" Column, Yu Hao’s posting frequency on Xiaohongshu has noticeably decreased in the past month, with more focus on sharing polished promotional videos, and it’s now difficult to see him responding to comments, which may be related to his dissatisfaction with Xiaohongshu.
In fact, regarding Xiaohongshu’s algorithm and recommendation mechanism, users have long complained about being “trapped in an information cocoon.”
A senior user said that Xiaohongshu’s algorithm is really frustrating. He was initially attracted by the hope of breaking information limitations and making more friends, but felt a suffocating information cocoon after just a few months.
“I clicked on a negative news item before, and then I was bombarded with related content for a period of time, and I couldn’t see any other content. I thought I could see more perspectives, but in the end, there was no change.”
“It’s important to understand diverse voices, but when these extreme viewpoints come flooding in and even cover up other valuable information, it’s really frustrating.”
“This platform, which should be open and inclusive, makes me feel my horizons are narrowing due to the algorithm’s irrationality.”
“The information cocoon is very powerful. I searched for something I would never have searched for before, and it keeps recommending it. This will become increasingly rigid in the long run, and I’m afraid of feeling like everyone agrees with me.”
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The "BUG" Column reported Xiaohongshu’s official customer service about user complaints regarding the unreasonable “push flow algorithm mechanism.” They stated that after enabling personalized recommendations, the system will identify user preferences and recommend more relevant notes, videos, and livestreams. Customer service also said they understand the algorithm mechanism issue reported by users.
Internet analyst Zhang Shule said: “Essentially, algorithmic recommendation is about accurately delivering content based on user interests, rather than the information container of traditional media. Once users focus on a certain topic for a long time, they will inevitably experience the formation of an information cocoon.”
Having vigorously governed showing off wealth, it still frequently occurs.
In addition, Xiaohongshu has also been criticized by users for being full of “showing off wealth” and guiding bad values. For example, some accounts display piles of expensive luxury goods, cars, etc., and some accounts show large amounts of cash, showing off cars, watches, etc.
At the same time, there are also accounts showing exaggerated income and boasting about earning money far beyond the average person, promoting bad values of showing off wealth. To this end, Xiaohongshu has released eight announcements regarding cracking down on showing off wealth, and banned many users. But it still frequently occurs until the end of last year.
For example, some bloggers still create personas using keywords such as “Ferrari” and “workplace.” In the five posts they published, the Ferrari sports car appeared continuously, and they captioned it with “researching how to make more money,” seemingly intending to cause users anxiety. For example, there are also bloggers who frequently release videos of “driving a Porsche,” and the video covers are all of them holding the steering wheel, with captions such as “life is a wilderness,” “28 years old is 18 with money,” and “economic freedom, more freedom in life,” with users commenting “I don’t understand (showing off) what’s in my heart.”
An industry insider believes that from Yu Hao’s “angry triple post” to user questioning of information cocoons, and to the frequent occurrence of showing off wealth, Xiaohongshu as a platform urgently needs to guide more positive values, rather than letting the platform become a fermentation ground for public opinion. “Most users are accustomed to algorithmic recommendations, and there is not much demand for the platform to provide choice rights. This online controversy, apart from considering corporate interests, is also a chance to urge the platform to launch a ‘button’ for users to choose sooner rather than later.”