Free Wi-Fi App Ranks Among China's Most Popular Services
WiFi Master Key, a free hotspot app by Shanghai startup LinkSure, ranks as China's fifth-largest app with 800 million global users. The service shares network passwords while keeping users engaged with algorithmic news content.
WiFi Master Key, a free service that connects users to nearby wireless networks without passwords, ranks as the fifth-largest app in China and the ninth-largest globally by monthly active users. Developed by the Shanghai-based startup LinkSure, the app boasts 700 million monthly active users in China and an additional 100 million worldwide, placing it just behind tech giants like Tencent's WeChat and Alibaba's Alipay. Beyond providing internet connectivity, the app retains its massive user base by recommending personalized news and video content through an algorithm-driven feed.
The application operates by building a vast database of Wi-Fi credentials that it collects directly from its users. Whenever a person types a network password into the app, such as a code provided by a coffee shop barista, the software encrypts and transmits that information to the cloud. This stored data then allows other WiFi Master Key users at the same location to seamlessly access the network without ever seeing the actual password, a system the company uses to brand itself as a Wi-Fi "sharing" platform.
LinkSure leverages this enormous traffic to generate revenue through advertising, a strategy that helps the startup achieve a $1 billion valuation following a $52 million Series A round in 2015. The company maintains a relatively low public profile despite its massive scale, though its founder Chen Danian brings significant industry pedigree from co-founding the former gaming giant Shanda Games. In a recent leadership shift, former Shanda executive Wang Jingying takes over as CEO, making her one of the few prominent female leaders in China's competitive tech sector.