Xin Lang Cai Jing·2026-02-18 09:01Group 1 - The traditional practice of giving red envelopes during the Lunar New Year in China has evolved, with tech giants leveraging it to attract users to their AI chatbots [1][3] - Major companies like Baidu, Tencent, Alibaba, and ByteDance have initiated electronic red envelope campaigns, distributing approximately 4.5 billion RMB nationwide [3] - Baidu launched a red envelope campaign worth nearly 61 million euros (about 500 million RMB) on January 25 to promote its Wenxin Yiyan chatbot [3] Group 2 - Tencent followed suit with a Spring Festival red envelope activity, where users needed to interact with the chatbot or share the app to qualify for a lottery [3] - Alibaba announced a "30 billion RMB free order" campaign on its Qianwen platform, offering 3 euros (25 RMB) coupons for each tea order, leading to a surge in orders [3] - ByteDance participated by distributing red envelopes and offering 100,000 prizes during the CCTV Spring Festival Gala, including robots and drones [3] Group 3 - The effectiveness of these campaigns is evident, with Alibaba's Qianwen app reaching the top of the free app download chart in China just one day after the campaign launch [3] - Despite the initial success, media commentary suggests that user retention will be the true challenge beyond the red envelope promotions [3]