Kangshi Encyclopedia Files IPO Prospectus: Pioneering Internet Healthcare Through Medical Video Content

Against the backdrop of the rapid development of internet healthcare, many entrepreneurs are seeking to enter the market from different angles. Some have opted for online lightweight consultations, while others have chosen to develop tools for physicians. Kswiki, however, has chosen video as its entry point.

Healthcare and medical videos are hardly a novel concept, ranging from the popular TV program “Yang Sheng Tang” to various video platforms focused on general health. So, what sets Kswiki Encyclopedia apart? With this question in mind, VCBeat interviewed Wang Hongbo, Founder and CEO of Kswiki Encyclopedia.Medical Experts in the Video Industry, Video Experts in the Medical IndustryWang Hongbo, CEO of Kswiki Encyclopedia, has a background in technology development and previously worked at Shanghai Media Group, establishing his early connection with the video industry. He later returned to Guangdong to launch his entrepreneurial venture, co-founding Chutong Technology, one of China’s earliest companies specializing in mobile internet software outsourcing. The company collaborated with Health Road, which had just secured substantial investment from Baidu, playing a pivotal role in advancing Health Road’s mobile strategy.

In fact, Kswiki Encyclopedia was not Wang Hongbo’s team’s first internet healthcare product; they had also developed a maternal and infant app called “Super Mommy” in 2011. This initial foray gave him a clearer understanding of the internet healthcare sector.

He believes that although internet healthcare is currently experiencing a surge in popularity, with a myriad of companies emerging and entering various segments of the industry from different angles, one critical point must be noted: in the short term, the core resource of the entire industry—physicians, particularly specialist-level doctors—cannot be rapidly increased. Therefore, enabling physicians to efficiently connect with the public via the internet presents both a challenge and an opportunity.

Wang Hongbo discovered through market research that, in the course of medical service delivery, physicians often spend a significant amount of time communicating basic health knowledge and pre- and post-operative precautions to patients. This represents an inefficient use of medical resources. Although there is abundant health-related information available on the internet, it is often complex, fragmented, and even contradictory, making it difficult for most non-professionals to distinguish accurate information from misinformation. Meanwhile, doctors’ time—especially that of specialists—is extremely limited. While numerous health-focused apps currently offer consultation services, they primarily rely on text and images. In an era characterized by rapid content consumption, lengthy texts test users’ patience. Even when combined with visuals, such formats still demand considerable imagination and logical reasoning from users, particularly in the field of healthcare, which presents significant “disciplinary barriers” for laypeople. These shortcomings are further exacerbated in contexts involving emergency care and disease management. Therefore, leveraging the widespread adoption of 4G networks, reforming the content format of health apps has become imperative, with video emerging as the most promising breakthrough.Kswiki Encyclopedia App Interface

Currently, the Kswiki team mainly consists of four parts: the technical development team, the medical film and television team, the operations team, and the physician team. Among them, the technical development team and the operations team are "veterans" who have been working with Wang Hongbo since the startup phase and have many years of team collaboration experience. The medical film and television team and the physician team were established last September, but it only took two weeks for the teams to integrate successfully, meeting the requirements for the cold start of the Kswiki app and one version iteration per month. During discussions with VCBeat, Wang Hongbo emphasized that although Kswiki is a young mobile internet company, he hopes that Kswiki will not only become the most video-savvy mobile healthcare team but also the most mobile healthcare-savvy video team.Not Just an "Encyclopedia"VCBeat believes that using video as an entry point enables top-tier medical experts to serve the general public through mobile internet platforms. Moreover, recorded videos can be reused repeatedly, resulting in higher efficiency. Surveys indicate that mobile video viewing is growing rapidly and has already surpassed PC-based viewing, with demand for medical and health-related videos increasing day by day. Therefore, Kswiki Encyclopedia has adopted a strategy of prioritizing app development. 

Video Playback Devices and Age Distribution

Wang Hongbo revealed to VCBeat that the Kangshi Baike app has surpassed one million downloads across major platforms, with a total of over 1,100 videos covering more than 20 medical specialties. The platform has partnered with over 20 hospitals and engaged more than 120 physicians, including academicians of the caliber of Zhong Nanshan.

As Kswiki Encyclopedia’s videos are completely ad-free, its revenue model has naturally become a point of concern. Wang Hongbo stated that Kswiki Encyclopedia is currently focused on product development and expanding its video library, so profitability is not the primary consideration at this stage. Nevertheless, he expressed strong confidence in potential future revenue models.

Regarding the future development direction of Kswiki, Wang Hongbo stated that he positions Kswiki as “using video as the entry point for new medical services.” Therefore, although the current primary focus remains on optimizing the app, increasing the volume of videos, recruiting more high-quality physicians, and achieving full coverage of medical specialties, Kswiki aims to be more than just an “encyclopedia.” In the future, it will incorporate remote video capabilities, serving as an entry point for video consultations and even online hospitals.

VCBeat also believes that with the future development of internet healthcare, simple voice- and text-based medical consultations are clearly insufficient, while remote video consultations may become a promising approach in the future. Shenzhen Kswiki Health Technology Co., Ltd. has undoubtedly recognized the development potential of video as an entry point.