Luo Yonghao, best known as the founder of Chinese technology company Smartisan, is reportedly set to start an e-commerce livestream channel on Taobao ahead of this year’s Singles Day festival, with his first appearance on Oct.24, the beginning of Taobao’s Singles Day presales. Luo has had an exclusive partnership with Douyin for e-commerce livestreaming on the platform since May 2020, but he announced he was quitting all social media in order to focus on a new device company this June. Meanwhile, Yu Minhong, chairman of New Oriental Education & Technology Group, will also appear on Taobao via New Oriental’s live room on Oct. 31. The news is widely viewed as part of an aggressive campaign by Alibaba’s flagship e-commerce platform to poach Douyin’s most popular livestream talent. According to the Chinese media outlet The Paper, Yu’s Oriental Selection and Luo’s Make Friends have not signed an exclusive agreement with TikTok’s sister app, meaning they are free to choose different platforms if they wish. [The Paper, in Chinese]