Weibo

Name

Weibo

Legal name

Weibo Corporation

Website

https://weibo.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Social Media Platform

NAICS

Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (516210)

akta.pro primary industry

General-Purpose Social Networks (BPAMABAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Gaming Community, Chat & LFG Platforms (BPAMAKAK), Online News & Magazine Publishing Platforms (CMS & Hosting) (MPAJAMAC)

Keywords

• Social media platform
• Microblogging service
• Display advertising
• Influencer marketing
• Content discovery

Headquarters

HQ city

Beijing

HQ country

China

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Advertising and Marketing: Weibo's primary revenue driver, generating approximately 80% of total revenue. Includes display advertising, branded content, and performance-based marketing solutions for brands and businesses targeting Weibo's user base of 562 million MAUs.
2. Value-Added Services (VAS): Includes membership subscriptions, online games, and live streaming services that complement the core advertising business.
3. Dividend Distributions: Weibo returned approximately $150 million (US$0.61 per share) as an annual cash dividend for fiscal year 2025 to shareholders.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Weibo operates a Chinese-language microblogging and social networking platform that enables users to share real-time posts, multimedia content, and engage in public discourse. The platform generates the substantial majority of its revenue from advertising and marketing services sold to brands and businesses seeking to reach 562 million monthly active users. Supplementary value-added services include membership subscriptions, online games, and live streaming.

Product overview

Weibo is a single unified social media platform (often called 'China's Twitter') with integrated sub-products. The core Weibo platform generates revenue primarily from advertising and marketing services, supported by AI-powered features including Weibo Intelligent Search. Adjacent offerings include VibeThinker-3B (open-source AI language model), the Weibo Charity Platform (philanthropic fundraising), Weibo Gaming (esports subsidiary), and the WIEA Weibo International Entertainment Awards (international entertainment events). The platform serves 562 million monthly active users as of Q1 2026.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• 80 million+ monthly active users on Weibo Intelligent Search as of December 2025
• +3 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

AI capability7 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Alibaba (Qwen)coreTechnology or Integration · 17 June 2026Weibo's VibeThinker-3B language model is built on Alibaba's Qwen2.5-Coder-3B base model. Weibo introduced the 'Parametric Compression-Coverage Hypothesis' and claims benchmark scores matching or exceeding flagship AI systems from Google DeepMind, OpenAI, Anthropic, and DeepSeek, though the AI community has expressed skepticism about the results.
• International Artists (China, Korea, Thailand)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 April 2026Weibo hosted the inaugural WIEA (Weibo International Entertainment Awards) from April 25-26, 2026, at Galaxy Arena in Macau, featuring artists from China, South Korea, and Thailand including Jay Park, BAEKHYUN, RIIZE, BILLKIN, PP KRIT, MIRROR, and Zhan Xuan. This event marks a new phase in Weibo's global entertainment strategy, building a connected ecosystem integrating international artists with Chinese audiences.
• DeepSeekflagshipTechnology or Integration · 20 February 2026Weibo began internal testing of integration with DeepSeek's R1 model for its intelligent search feature on February 20, 2025, with CEO Wang Gaofei posting updates demonstrating the model's analysis of platform discussions. This integration is part of Weibo's broader AI strategy, with DeepSeek having gained international popularity since its January 2025 launch and being rapidly adopted across China's tech ecosystem.
• Weibo Gaming (Esports)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 December 2025Weibo Gaming is identified as one of the largest esports properties in the Asia-Pacific technology, media, and telecom sponsorship landscape, according to ResearchAndMarkets.com's December 2025 report. Weibo Gaming represents Weibo's esports presence and activities.
• Alliance for Good (AFG)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 4 November 2025Weibo partnered with Alliance for Good (AFG) to host the inaugural 'Celebrities for Good' charity gala in Singapore, opening the 2025 Business and Philanthropy Forum. The event featured A-list celebrities from Asia and significant philanthropists, with an auction supporting community programs and philanthropic efforts.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• WeChat (Tencent): Tencent's super-app with embedded social networking, messaging, and Moments feed. Directly competes with Weibo for user attention in China and overlaps in KOL-driven brand advertising.
• X (formerly Twitter): Global microblogging platform with similar real-time public-discourse use case to Weibo. Often cited as Weibo's international analogue, sharing comparable product positioning around KOL and news distribution.
• Xiaohongshu (Rednote): Lifestyle and community-driven social platform popular with Chinese consumers. Competes for influencer-driven brand marketing budgets and consumer engagement time.
• Douyin (ByteDance): ByteDance's flagship short-form video and social platform in China. Competes directly for ad budgets and user time, and has been a primary driver of Weibo's ad-share stagnation.
• Bilibili: Chinese video-centric social platform with strong community engagement. Overlaps with Weibo on KOL content, video recommendations, and brand advertising among younger demographics.
• Kuaishou: Short-form video and livestreaming platform with a deep presence in lower-tier Chinese cities. Competes for social-feed attention and ad spend alongside Weibo.

Others

• Sina Corporation: Parent company and controlling shareholder of Weibo. Operates Sina.com portal and other media properties; the corporate relationship shapes Weibo's capital allocation and dividend policy.

Broad incumbents

• Tencent Holdings: Parent of WeChat and operator of the largest Chinese digital advertising ecosystem. Competes broadly with Weibo across social, video, and digital ad inventory.
• ByteDance: Owner of Douyin, Toutiao, and other content platforms. A broad incumbent in Chinese digital media that has displaced traditional social platforms like Weibo in ad share growth.
• Meta Platforms: Global social media incumbent operating Facebook and Instagram. Comparable in business model (social-feed advertising at scale) but operates outside China, providing a benchmark for monetization efficiency.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sinaweibo

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds4 records

Investors4 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments18 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Weibo