MIDDLETOWN, N.Y.— In less than a year, Gan Jing World, a new social media platform, has built a solid infrastructure with its own data center and cloud server to facilitate a censorship-free experience, according to the company’s executive vice president of technology James Qiu.
Gan Jing means clean, and the platform is committed to providing content “free from violent, erotic, criminal or harmful material,” according to the startup’s website. Qiu said the market had responded positively; the new social media platform has achieved over 30 million pageviews in less than a year.
The timing of the startup’s new headquarters building—MT0, or Middletown Zero—coincided with its first anniversary. Over 200 people attended the event, including local politicians, business and community leaders, and content creators. Many guests said they were energized by the entrepreneurial vibe and collective goodwill to use the technology for good.
“If you believe in a positive America, come to Gan Jing World. If you believe in the next generation, come to Gan Jing World; if you believe in traditional values and divine culture, come to Gan Jing World,” said Nick Janicki, the platform’s director of media relations, who urged the guests to spread the message.
“This is a platform that is going to grow very, very quickly and something that the human race essentially needs,” he added.
‘People First’ Approach
Sherry Yin, executive vice president of business, summarized Gan Jing World’s approach as “people first.” Putting traditional values before technology is the group’s core value.
Qiu and his colleagues saw a need in a technology-driven society for “restoring traditional values and moral systems that are often overshadowed,” he said. As social media got parents’ attention during the pandemic lockdowns, he also took notice of young people’s addiction and how the virtual world might polarize one’s perceptions due to content recommendation algorithms.
“The starting point of a technology company is so critical when looking at the moral values and everything needed to build the next generation of the future,” Janicki echoed.
According to Qiu, a former Apple executive, Silicon Valley companies started with technology, and the algorithms don’t differentiate on good or bad content but on popularity. However, Gan Jing organizes its content differently, reflecting its different design by starting with traditional values and using technology for their restoration.
He told The Epoch Times that Gan Jing World had built what they called “information architecture”: “The analogy of content architecture is more like the traditional architecture in the city. So you go to a city, look at architecture, and know here is the city hall. So around this area, a building is probably a government building. And another street looks like a financial district.”
Inside Gan Jing World’s website, content gathers around such a meta or foundational structure, he said. Therefore, the algorithm allows content viewers to set up categories they want to learn about so technology can work for them to facilitate their learning.
User Protection
Sherry Yin is another executive who moved from Silicon Valley to Hudson Valley to join Gan Jing World. Like her colleagues, she, too, wanted to make technology do good for society.
She pledged to “never sell user data” and said that user privacy is a top priority for the company. “We collect the absolute minimum amount of user data compared to other platforms. We allow users to freely access our website and download our app without the need for registration,” she told the guests, adding that Gan Jing World only collects data required by regulatory compliance. “We do not engage in the active collection of user information or track user behavior.”
“With our private data center, we ensure user privacy and uphold our commitment to censorship-free experiences. Our cutting-edge cloud solution protects user data from threats and prevents unauthorized access,” she added. “Our algorithm seeks to enrich people’s minds by introducing them to programming and topics that broaden their knowledge and nourish their souls.”
‘Promises Made and Promises Kept’
Many guests spoke about their excitement fueled by Gan Jing World’s vision and growth.
“The arrival of this high-tech firm brings with it a myriad of opportunities for economic advancement and job creation in our city,” said Joseph DeStefano, mayor of Middletown. He said he was promised a year ago fast growth and the quick opening of a new building by renovating an old one, which he called “promises made and promises kept.”
Joseph Paone, a representative from Rep. Patrick Ryan’s (D-N.Y.) office, grew up in Middletown. He spoke highly of Gan Jing World’s core values: “Even if you’re not a techie, Gan Jing represents ideals and values in its name itself—the exact translation is clean. What that stands for are the guiding principles of no violence, no crime, no pornography, no drugs. Whatever your level of technology is, you can rally behind ideals like this.”
Lester Chang (R-Brooklyn), the first Asian American to represent Brooklyn in the New York State Assembly, attended the event after the state legislature wrapped up its 2023 sessions the night before. He said Gan Jing World made a wise decision to select the business location and would provide young people jobs in upstate New York.
The state legislator on the education committee is concerned about the addictiveness of social media and that moral values are lacking in school education. He hopes Gan Jing World’s efforts will “lower violence,” citing specific concerns of music promoting sex and violence to youth.
“We’ve got to go back to the basics,” he told The Epoch Times.
“I’m sure there’s a positive market,” he said, adding that he was confident Gan Jing World’s mission would resonate with people because of the family values of immigrants and citizens alike.
Steven Gross, economic development director of Orange County, where Middletown is located, spoke on behalf of county executive Steven Neuhaus.
He called Gan Jing World’s “MT0” building a “showcase to the community” to bring next-generation jobs to the county.
“But what this is going to do is really provide that safe opportunity for young people and everybody to surf the web without being exposed to some of that stuff that sometimes they’re exposed to,” Gross said, complimenting the company’s mission. “And that’s a great opportunity and venue for this Gan Jing World to really provide a service that’s really needed in the world today.”
‘No Political Censorship’
Jasper Fakkert, editor-in-chief for The Epoch Times, said, “The mission of Gan Jing World to provide people with wholesome content to focus on character, to focus on morals is something that we have loved.”
“Gan Jing World is built on the idea that there is no political censorship and that people can freely express their opinions, live, and encourage civil discourse. And these are all things that we, as a media organization, cherish and promote as well,” he added.
‘Energizing’
Gan Jing’s mission resonated with Sally Chetwynd, an author in the greater Boston metropolitan area. She learned about the new tech platform at a local event earlier this month and came to join the opening ceremony of Gan Jing World’s first corporate building. She now wants to open a channel on the Gan Jing World platform.
She described the event as “amazing,” “refreshing,” and “exciting.”
She said she thought Gan Jing World would clean up social media by providing clean, wholesome, family-friendly materials and options. Now, she has a refined view of what the company does.
“In a lot of ways, I see Gan Jing as the mouse that bells the cat. So the social media we see that’s so corrupted is the cat. And so somebody, a mouse, has finally stood up and said, ‘We need to bell the cat. Okay, I’m belling the cat.’ And all the other mice are going to rally,” she told The Epoch Times, adding that more and more people see the cat—the manipulative algorithm of Big Tech. “I think we’re going to have a lot of people rallying to this.”
“You cannot help not being energized by this kind of energy,” she added.
More information of the event is available on the company’s hashtag aggregation page.
