ByteDance releases Toutiao Search to compete with Baidu and Google

Zhang Yiming (ByteDance)

ByteDance has launched Toutiao Search, a search engine that surfaces web results alongside content from ByteDance's apps, including TikTok and Toutiao, the hugely popular news aggregator.

At launch, the browser app feels similar to Baidu or Google. Searching for news events surfaces relevant articles and similar search suggestions. Searching for locations surfaces cards dedicated to tourist attractions and the weather. Time will tell how prominent Toutiao Search features ByteDance's other apps in search results.

In a recent WeChat post, ByteDance announced that they're hiring people to work on the search engine, and have already hired talent from Baidu, Google, and Bing.

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