Millions are joining RedNote ahead of the TikTok ban. But the app’s default language is Mandarin. “Oh so NOW you’re learning Mandarin,” Duolingo tweeted on Monday.

How the brand tapped data-driven storytelling and cross-departmental collaboration to turn the disruptive moment into a win.

The latest plot twist in TikTok is not about the possible U.S. ban—it’s about the “TikTok refugees” jumping ship... straight into the arms of another Chinese app.

Many Americans are joining RedNote, also known as Xiaohongshu, as a potential TikTok ban looms in the US. As they hop from TikTok to RedNote, some of the so-called TikTok refugees are learning Mandarin to bridge the language divide on the Chinese app.

Despite the massive popularity of RedNote in the United States and the different corners of the globe, a majority of its users are still mainly speaking Chinese, and this language barrier has Duolingo racking up its numbers.

RedNote is a foreign-owned app, and experts warn that it could be attacked by the same law that is now banning TikTok.

Duolingo has seen a surge in U.S. Mandarin learners as TikTok users explore Chinese social app RedNote amid a looming ban.

"First of all, the Chinese are so nice, they're so sweet and so welcoming. They've over here teaching us Mandarin."

TikTok U.S. users have been learning Chinese on Duolingo in increasing numbers amid their adoption of a Chinese social app called RedNote ahead of the

Can RedNote sustain its rapid rise to success with US users? Even with a TikTok ban and Duolingo boost, it faces plenty of headwinds.

The company confirmed to CNBC that there's been a 216% increase in Mandarin learners using the app compared to a year earlier. For context, Spanish, one of the most popular languages on the app, has seen a 40% increase over the same period, Duolingo said.

In the days leading up to the TikTok ban in the U.S. on Sunday, U.S. users flooded the Chinese app RedNote, which offered a similar experience to their