Zhangshang Tangyi Redefines Diabetes Management with Hardware-Software Integration and Insurance-Driven User Experience

“Father of Competitive Strategy” Michael Porter summarized three effective competitive strategies: cost leadership strategy, differentiation strategy, and focus strategy.

Amid the fierce “Hundred Glucose Wars” in a red ocean market, Kuang Ming and his team adopted a differentiation strategy for Pocket Diabetic Doctor from the very beginning.



Zhangshang Tangyi is a mobile app designed for diabetes health management. Just one and a half months after its launch, the company secured millions of dollars in angel-round funding from Matrix Partners China and Ping An Ventures. Within three months, Zhangshang Tangyi had surpassed 100,000 downloads.

On the day of our interview with Kuang Ming, he was preparing to negotiate further cooperation with JD.com. Previously, the “Tang+” smart hardware, designed for use in conjunction with Zhangshang Tangyi (Pocket Diabetes Doctor), made its debut on JD.com’s crowdfunding platform and raised RMB 120,000.

“Crowdfunding helped us acquire a batch of seed users, who provided substantial feedback that facilitated product improvements. For instance, during an entrepreneurship competition hosted by Ant Financial, we invited a 60-year-old gentleman to use our product on-site. His suggestion was to simplify the operation further. Consequently, our next step is to enable automatic data upload to the app once the test strip is inserted, eliminating the need for manual button presses,” introduced Kuang Ming.

The essence of Internet thinking is “user-centricity,” which is what Kuang Ming values most.

However, Kuang Ming believes that his team has a deeper understanding of users. “Our founders include veterans from internet companies such as Alibaba and Microsoft, as well as professionals who have spent over a decade specializing in Johnson & Johnson’s diabetes division.” Kuang Ming is also one of the few entrepreneurs in the internet healthcare startup space who possesses both internet and medical backgrounds.

Kuang Ming, a graduate of Shanghai Jiao Tong University with a major in Electronic Information Engineering, pursued further studies at the University of Cambridge before joining Intel as an engineer. During his tenure, he invented multiple patents and was honored with the title of “Intel Asia-Pacific Patent Star.” He later served as the Head of Marketing for Johnson & Johnson Medical’s Asia-Pacific region, where he emerged as the company’s Annual Sales Manager Champion.

“I have a natural inclination for trying new things and pursuing innovation.” This innate drive prompted Kuang Ming to abandon a highly coveted position with an annual salary of one million yuan, choosing instead to join the ranks of entrepreneurs.

Leverage Alibaba Cloud to Acquire Precise Users

“Tang+” smart hardware currently supports 70% of the blood glucose meters on the market, which is a core competitive advantage for Palm Sugar Doctor in diabetes management.

Another unique aspect of Pocket Sugar Doctor lies in its user acquisition strategy. While establishing social platforms and offering online consultations are the most common approaches for diabetes-focused services to attract users, Pocket Sugar Doctor’s first step was to partner with Alibaba Cloud.

According to Kuang Ming, Alibaba’s underlying big data platform can accurately identify user needs and employ data mining algorithms to pinpoint individuals with diabetes who have a demand for diabetes-related products, as well as users who share strong ties with them. Through such precise traffic redirection, these relatively high-quality leads are directed to “Pocket Diabetes Doctor” (Zhangshang Tangyi), resulting in a comparatively higher conversion rate. Leveraging this targeted traffic acquisition, “Tang+” has been able to rapidly expand its market presence and scale up sales. Currently, the sales volume of “Tang+” has exceeded 10,000 units.

Reconstructing User Experience

Building a closed-loop diabetes management system integrating software and hardware is the goal of the Kuangming team. The first step in establishing this closed loop is to obtain sufficient patient information, with blood glucose data being the most critical component.

“Traditional hardware-based distribution of blood glucose meters is slow, and the user experience of manually entering data into an app is also poor,” said Kuang Ming. “Tang+” enables traditional blood glucose meter data to be uploaded to the cloud via the internet, eliminating the hassle for users to replace their devices.

Currently, users can upload diabetes data in just two steps. First, connect the Tang+ device to the blood glucose meter; second, open the app and tap “Import” to sync the data to the mobile backend.

In fact, the business model of Zhangshang Tangyi (Pocket Diabetes Doctor) is similar to that of foreign diabetes management platforms such as WellDoc and Glooko. However, WellDoc requires manual entry of blood glucose data, while Glooko’s dongle is relatively expensive, priced at approximately $60. Moreover, WellDoc and Glooko currently offer only data collection and analysis functions, with limited offline services. In contrast, Zhangshang Tangyi provides a variety of offline service activities, and its hardware costs only tens of yuan.

“Methods such as earning points, accessing offline pharmacies and community hospital education, and receiving rewards or real-world feedback can, to some extent, encourage users to adhere to regular blood glucose monitoring.” Kuang Ming observed that users of the Zhangshang Tangyi app have become more proactive in measuring their blood glucose levels than before. “Previously, the average frequency of blood glucose monitoring among diabetic patients in China was once per week; now, it has improved to an average of once every two days. However, this figure still lags behind that of the United States, where diabetic patients monitor their blood glucose an average of twice daily.”

In fact, the frequency with which users monitor their blood glucose levels is beneficial to blood glucose meter manufacturers, as it boosts the sales of consumables such as test strips. “Users are more receptive and sensitive to shorter feedback loops. For instance, incentives provided after a blood glucose test can help users quickly and directly perceive the significance and value of completing the task. For example, diabetic patients could receive prompts indicating that adhering to a prescribed testing regimen may reduce future treatment costs,” said Kuang Ming. He noted that this approach essentially constitutes a form of psychological health management and guidance.

However, it must be acknowledged that blood glucose monitoring remains a painful experience. Enhancing the patient experience in this regard ultimately relies on continuous technological innovation. It is reported that Zhangshang Tangyi (Pocket Diabetes Doctor) is currently negotiating a collaboration with an Israeli company specializing in minimally invasive blood glucose monitoring technology. Additionally, the Zhangshang Tangyi app will soon launch a featured function that provides customized nutritional meal plans tailored to diabetic complications.

In addition to data logging, Palm Sugar Doctor enables users to consult hospital specialists online and share dietitian-customized low-sugar recipes with fellow diabetes patients. Currently, its physician resources are sourced from part-time doctors at tertiary Grade A hospitals. In the near future, Palm Sugar Doctor will partner with Ping An Good Doctor, whose platform staffed entirely by full-time physicians is expected to deliver a superior user experience.

However, there are currently fewer than 50 doctors on the Zhangshang Tangyi platform, but Kuang Ming stated that approximately 1,000 doctors have already been reserved in its backend database. “At present, I do not need more doctors to be active on the platform, as the frequency with which diabetic patients consult doctors is very low. I believe that doctors will become more active only when there is a sufficient patient base. When there are no user consultations, the experience for the doctors themselves is also poor.”

The core profit model is to integrate insurance.

Kuang Ming stated that Palm Sugar Doctor is currently the only company that has established de facto cooperation with insurance companies.

In November last year, after the General Office of the State Council issued the "Several Opinions on Accelerating the Development of Commercial Health Insurance," major insurance companies launched related insurance products, such as diabetes insurance or chronic disease insurance. These types of insurance require a professional platform to help establish claims standards. This is precisely where apps like Zhangshang Tangyi (Pocket Diabetes Doctor) find their opportunity.

“Even if the user base of any current diabetes-focused app were multiplied by ten, it would still be difficult to impress insurance companies,” Kuang Ming told VCBeat. “The system migration costs for insurers are highly complex. Once we establish a functional partnership with an insurance company, it will be difficult for other companies to replace us in the short term.”

Kuang Ming believes that neither online consultations nor the e-commerce marketplace model is sustainable. He argues that collaboration with insurance institutions is the optimal approach. “Even Chunyu Yisheng has failed to achieve sustained profitability through online consultations, and the demand for such services among diabetic patients is even lower. As for selling medical devices and consumables via an online marketplace, no one can surpass Tmall.”

Although Zhangshang Tangyi currently collaborates with numerous B-side enterprises, including medical device manufacturers, health checkup institutions, and e-commerce platforms, partnerships with insurance companies will constitute the core model for its future profitability.

"In fact, Kuang Ming had designed the business model for Pocket Diabetes Doctor from the very beginning. The reason for choosing Ping An Ventures was also due to the appeal of Ping An Insurance. 'From the start, we believed that commercial insurance was the most important business model.'"