{
  "id": 9578039,
  "title": "China's 'Lipstick King' confronts slower growth, AI in live-stream shopping",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/24/chinas-lipstick-king-confronts-slower-growth-ai-in-live-stream",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-24T15:17:48.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "New Straits Times",
    "slug": "new-straits-times",
    "url": "https://www.nst.com.my/opinion/columnists/2026/09/1540439/chinas-lipstick-king-confronts-slower-growth-ai-live-stream"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "For nearly a decade, Li Jiaqi, dubbed the Lipstick King of China, has been synonymous with the live-stream shopping industry. Despite a slowdown in growth and the advent of artificial intelligence (AI), Li remains optimistic about the future of the sector. \"Growth may not be as explosive as it was four or five years ago,\" said Li, who started live-streaming in 2016, \"but the industry has moved into a stable and healthy phase.\"\n\nThe live-streaming industry has reshaped China's shopping habits, with online retail sales exceeding 36 percent of total retail sales in 2023, up from less than 18 percent in 2021. However, consumer spending is becoming more cautious, with retail sales rising by only 0.4 percent in August, down from 0.6 percent in July. This has forced merchants to compete harder for customers' wallets, with expectations for high-quality content remaining high despite tighter budgets.\n\nArtificial intelligence is lowering operating costs for e-commerce platforms and merchants, with AI hosts potentially cutting live-stream operating costs by 80 to 90 percent. JD.com even made its AI hosting service free to merchants last December, with adoption surging within three months. AI hosts can maintain viewership overnight, allowing human hosts to rest, according to Li.\n\nHowever, AI is not seen as a replacement for human hosts. Li believes AI can improve efficiency but cannot replicate the trust and judgment that drive sales. Human hosts are still crucial in building trust with customers, especially when it comes to more nuanced conversations beyond simple product recommendations. Li also sees AI as a complementary tool to human hosts, rather than a replacement. Digital presenters struggle to replicate the trust and judgment that drive sales, according to Lu Lin, a young host at a live-streaming agency in Shanghai.\n\nThe industry is also grappling with regulatory challenges. Clear labelling of AI-generated content took effect in September 2022, and ByteDance-owned Douyin has banned fully AI-generated live-streams, requiring disclosure of digital hosts' usage. Backlash has greeted some influencers who have revealed the use of AI avatars in their streams. While some predict the decline of human hosts, Li believes human hosts will remain important, especially in more complex conversations. The industry is shifting towards a focus on profitability, with competition making large-scale systems and operational capabilities increasingly critical.",
  "summary": "FOR nearly a decade, China’s “Lipstick King” has been the face of the live-stream shopping industry, helping to grow a niche format into one of the country’s most important retail channels.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}