Ex-Alibaba engineer: Meta Muse could become the next WeChat via WhatsApp network effects

dotey · x · 2026-09-25

Yu Bo (@lifesinger) argues WeChat won through a cheap messaging刚需 that created network effects, not by "understanding users." Muse today handles email, calendar, and phone chores—similar to WeChat's early messaging hook—but without network effects it competes head-on with ChatGPT.

He suggests Meta's real killer move could be WhatsApp → Muse (mirroring QQ contacts → WeChat): your Muse connects to your contacts' Muses on WhatsApp, growing stronger through connection. If executed, Muse could beat WeChat's model—WeChat keeps you online while awake, Muse's agents work while you sleep. He adds he doesn't expect big companies to pull this off, pinning hopes on founders like Qi Junyuan and Ma Xiaolong.

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