Why does Luo Yonghao still "show up" on Bilibili after paying off his debts?

You can never underestimate Luo Yonghao. From New Oriental to Smartisan phones, from live - streaming e - commerce to pay off debts to appearing on variety shows to maintain public exposure, from AR entrepreneurship to transitioning to AI and launching the J1 Assistant, every time he appears, he is always accompanied by traffic and controversy.

But you have to admire him. Although both are considered "failed entrepreneurs", Luo Yonghao clearly has a better public image than Jia Yueting. The public's tolerance and attention towards him go far beyond mere interest and topics of conversation; it has become a kind of "content belief".

Unexpectedly, the busy Luo, who already has many labels, is adding another chapter to his story. Just this month, Luo Yonghao joined Bilibili and released his first video podcast, "Luo Yonghao's Crossroads", on August 19th, featuring a nearly four - hour in - depth conversation with Li Xiang, the founder of Li Auto.

On second thought, this move of his is actually quite reasonable. After all, the public's special faith in his IP stems from his "content". As the persona of an idealistic entrepreneur is gradually worn out, Luo needs a new platform to continue building his "popularity" and the trust behind the entrepreneur IP label, and to re - cultivate his "core IP" as an entrepreneur.

01

Retrieving the Microphone:

Regaining the Narrative Dominance

Although live - streaming e - commerce helped Luo pay off his debts, it was obvious that he seemed a bit constrained during the process. As the "forever young and forever passionate" Luo Yonghao, his extraordinary life doesn't need an explanation. However, when it comes to the traffic - driven business, the "right to narrative" always seems to be in the hands of the platform and public opinion. Any live - streaming e - commerce anchor on any platform needs to cater to the preferences of the majority of the audience and compete for their attention. Otherwise, the business logic of "attracting traffic - converting purchases" won't work.

The video podcast can be regarded as Luo's "comfort zone". In the program, he completely regains the narrative dominance of the topic.

In the newly launched first episode, Luo and Li Xiang started by chatting about childhood memories unrelated to business, uncovering Li Xiang's story as a "left - behind child" and his "childhood trauma" of being beaten and then fighting back. The conversation maintained a comfortable pace. Luo kept throwing questions one after another, and sometimes couldn't help sharing his own views after listening to Li Xiang's stories. The whole atmosphere gave a sense of certainty that "this is what I want to talk about". As the conversation went on, the narrative right quietly returned.

Although Luo didn't talk as much as he did in a live - streaming sales session, he was full of curiosity and the desire to express himself in the video podcast.

"When I was a kid, whenever I talked about my ambitions, I was mercilessly laughed at. Teachers would give me strange looks... and so did my classmates. What hit me the most was what my older brother said. He said I was a fool and had so many unrealistic ideas... My parents neither discouraged nor encouraged me. They just thought I was daydreaming." Luo Yonghao shared when talking about his childhood aspirations.

There are many such examples throughout the video podcast. About fighting back after being bullied, about employees leaving the company, about the stimulation of wealth, etc. You'll find that while Luo is advancing the conversation to get Li Xiang to share more "incremental information" and "scarce information", he is also quickly interacting with his own thoughts, using Li Xiang's stories to verify his life experiences.

To some extent, Luo is actually using the form of "conversation" to rebuild the "expression space" he once lost. And this is the power of the video podcast: it doesn't dampen the desire to express, but rather nurtures it, allowing a person to regain their own narrative rhythm.

Luo admits to a "rash" move during his phone - startup period

02

Identity Transformation:

Re - accumulating，Personal Brand Assets

Besides regaining the desire to express and the narrative sovereignty, the video podcast is also a new platform for Luo Yonghao to re - accumulate his personal brand assets.

Due to years of entertainment - content output and appearances on variety shows, Luo has become somewhat of a "web celebrity". His personal IP is very different from those of "tech entrepreneurs" like Lei Jun and Zhou Hongyi. However, since he still plans to start a business in the AI field after paying off his debts, a personal brand with more business sense, a sense of the future, and a sense of thought is particularly important.

In "Luo Yonghao's Crossroads", we see a different Luo. He discusses topics such as the entrepreneurial journey, corporate management, employee relations, corporate strategies, and even artificial intelligence with Li Xiang. Instead of making long, empty speeches, he has in - depth exchanges and asks pointed questions based on his own experiences. The instant tributes in the Bilibili bullet comments not only prove the quality of the content but also help Luo gain trust and recognition during the process of shaping his new identity.

Obviously, compared with entertainment content, in - depth conversation video podcasts can better highlight the identity of a "thinker".

This makes me think of Joe Rogan, the number - one podcast host in the United States. He was originally a comedian and a mixed - martial - arts commentator. But as his video podcast program developed, Joe Rogan successfully transformed into a public intellectual with media influence. During the intense period of the U.S. presidential election, Rogan's three - hour conversation with Trump set a viewing record of 26 million times within 24 hours after its release.

Joe Rogan's video podcast: Conversations with celebrities like Trump and Musk

Luo might be following a similar path. His video podcasts often last for several hours, yet still manage to keep the audience highly engaged. Because the audience knows that through Luo's "introduction", they can get "unedited first - hand information" rather than packaged news or short videos.

Just like in this episode, Li Xiang got emotional and revealed a lot of his "secrets" in front of Luo.

The famous scene of Li Xiang getting teary - eyed

Gradually, Luo's video podcast will develop a reliable content guarantee and a viewing habit. His personal brand assets will continue to accumulate. It's like a bank: when there's a need for crisis public relations or commercialization, it's "spending money"; while continuous output of high - quality content is "saving money" for Luo. The compound - interest effect of this "content deposit" will gradually become apparent in the future.

More importantly, the video podcast allows Luo Yonghao's expression to enter a "more daily and healthier" cycle. It's no longer an exhaustive output but a combination of nourishing input and output. In the interview, he can raise his doubts and directly ask the guests for advice, seeking resonance and inspiration from others' stories. Such conversations are not only content production but also self - growth.

03

Choosing Bilibili,

Accumulating a New Generation of Young Supporters

As for why he joined Bilibili, I think it echoes the lyrics "One generation will eventually grow old, but there are always new generations coming up". The "old - generation" Luo also needs to constantly cultivate new fans to avoid becoming an "outdated star".

We've seen that this wave of Bilibili video podcasts has attracted many "veteran artists". Yu Qian and Li Yitong talked about the otaku culture of collectibles, from visiting birdcage markets to collecting figurines. One generation shared their "little treasures"; "Professional interview host" Lu Yu has released a conversation with Yi Lijing and has also announced upcoming guests like Eason Chan and Dou Wentao...

For them, Bilibili video podcasts are indeed a relatively reasonable choice.

On the one hand, the average age of Bilibili users is only 26 years old. And in the past two years, young people have flocked to Bilibili to learn about AI. Isn't this the target - user group for Luo, who is starting a business in the AI field? The ability to watch content on mobile phones or TVs at any time helps cover different user scenarios.

On the other hand, Bilibili users are more receptive to in - depth long - form content and give more positive feedback. The conversation between Luo and Li Xiang lasted for 3 hours, 57 minutes, and 16 seconds. But even after 3 hours, there were still a lot of interactions in the bullet comments, and users were even cheering each other on. As of 9 a.m. on August 22nd, the program had received over 53,000 likes and over 20,000 reposts on Bilibili.

These instant resonance feedbacks are extremely important for any content creator. Firstly, it confirms that the program hasn't disappeared without a trace and that they're not talking to an unresponsive audience. Secondly, it can continuously motivate people to produce better content.

Even if we look at it from the worst - case scenario, all major platforms have reached a certain stable state, being relatively saturated and having solidified interests. Bilibili video podcasts are a new opportunity, like a remedy for those who missed out on previous content trends.

As an audience, young people also need this kind of high - quality "genuine content". There's too much fake chicken soup and out - of - context information in the market. This kind of original first - hand narration is extremely scarce. No wonder Luo initially said: "It's not exactly like having lunch with Warren Buffett, but it's almost as valuable."

04

Conclusion

Luo Yonghao's life trajectory is like a long - running drama with multiple plotlines: full of twists, turns, and surprises. But if you look closely, there's always an underlying thread running through it - he has never just gone with the flow. He used live - streaming to pay off debts, variety shows to maintain exposure, and AI to bet on the future. Now, he uses video podcasts to retrieve the microphone and rebuild the cycle of expression and input.

This is not only a continuation of his personal narrative but also a footnote to the current content ecosystem: in the wave of fast - food and fragmented content, there are still people willing to sit down and listen to a three - hour sincere conversation, and there are still people willing to pay for "sincere expression".

This article is from the WeChat official account "Shenxiang", author: He Li. Republished by 36Kr with permission.