元新闻

# Yuan: The WeChat Account That Turns Tech into Human Stories You Can’t Put Down

Imagine sitting across from a 70-year-old grandma in Cheng, watching her squint at a laptop screen as her fingers tap slowly but deliberately on the keyboard. “This app I’m coding helps my grandson track homework,” she says, wiping her glasses with a frayed cloth. “Before, I couldn’t understand a word he said about his coding class. we argue about loop structures over dinner.”

This moment—warm, unexpected, and deeply human—became the heart of a story that would go viral WeChat: “The 70-Year-Old Grandma Who Learnt Coding to Keep Up With Her Grandson.” It’s the kind story you won’t find on most tech news platforms, but it’s exactly what makes Yuan News (元新闻) a breath of fresh in the crowded world of Chinese digital media.

Yuan News isn’t just another WeChat public account reporting on the latest iPhone launch or AI. It’s a space where tech is stripped of its jargon and还原 (restored) to its core: people. For the past three years this small but passionate team has been telling stories of how technology intersects with everyday lives—from rural teachers using AI to teach math to hospital patients using to manage pain. Their mission? To make tech accessible, relatable, and human.

Let’s dive deep into what makes Yuan News so special

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1. Platform & Audience: A Community of Curious, Heartfelt Readers

Yuan News lives on WeChat,’s most popular social platform—chosen not just for its reach, but for its ability to foster deep, long-form reading and community engagement. Unlike-video platforms like Douyin, WeChat allows readers to sit with a story, reflect, and comment at their own pace.

The audience of Yuan is a diverse group of 120,000+ readers, but they share one thing in common: they’re curious about the world headlines. Most are between 25 and 45 years old—professionals in tech, education, and media, but also teachers, parents and retirees who want to understand how tech shapes their lives. Sixty percent are male, 40% female, with a strong presence in first cities (Beijing, Shanghai) and fast-growing new first-tiers (Chengdu, Hangzhou).

What sets this audience apart is their engagement. read rates hover around 18%—well above the industry average of 5% for long-form content. Comments are not just one-liners they’re stories in themselves. For example, after the grandma coding story went viral, a reader named Zhang Li commented: “My mom is 6 and just started using TikTok to sell her homemade pickles. This story made me cry—tech isn’t just for young people.”

Yuan isn’t just a公众号 (public account); it’s a community of people who believe tech should serve humanity, not the other way around.

---## 2. The Minds Behind Yuan News: From Frustrated Journalists to Storytellers with a Mission

The story of Yuan News starts Li Xiao, a former tech journalist at Caixin Media. For 10 years, she covered the latest tech trends—from Alibaba’s IPO to rise of AI—but she grew frustrated. “Most tech news was just about numbers: how much funding a startup got, how many users an app had she says. “We forgot to ask: who is this tech for? What does it mean for real people?”

In 2020 Li quit her job and gathered a small team of like-minded creatives: a data analyst who loves storytelling, an anthropologist who studies tech’s cultural, and a photographer who specializes in capturing everyday moments. Their office is a tiny apartment in Beijing’s hutongs—walls covered with photos of the they’ve interviewed, from rural teachers to AI researchers.

Their professional positioning is clear: Yuan News is the bridge between tech innovation and human. They don’t just report trends; they uncover the “why” and “who” behind them. For example, when everyone was talking about theverse, they didn’t write about Facebook’s rebranding—they visited a hospital in Guangzhou where doctors use VR to help cancer patients manage pain

Li Xiao puts it best: “Tech is just a tool. The real story is the person holding it.”

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3. Content & Differentiation: Stories That Make Tech Feel Like Home

Yuan News’s content is organized into four pillars—each designed to humanize:

a. Tech Human Stories: The Unsung Heroes of Innovation

These are the stories that make Yuan News stand out. For example:- The Rural AI Teacher: Wang Ming, a teacher in a mountain village in Yunnan, uses an AI tool to teach math to 5 students. The tool adapts to each student’s pace—so a slow learner can repeat a lesson until they get it. “Before, I couldn give every student the attention they needed,” Wang says. “Now, the AI is my assistant.” This story got 500k reads and10k shares, with many readers donating books and laptops to the village school.

• The Disabled Coder: Liu Tao, who his arms in a car accident, uses his feet to code apps for people with disabilities. His most popular app helps visually impaired users navigate public transport.I know what it’s like to feel excluded,” he says. “This app is my way of giving back.”

b. Trend Deep D: Beyond Headlines

Yuan News doesn’t just report trends—they dig into their impact. For example:

• Metaverse in: Instead of talking about virtual reality games, they visited a hospital where patients use VR to distract themselves from chemotherapy pain. “When I put on the headset, I’m in a forest,” says a patient named Chen Yu. “The pain doesn’t go away, but it feels smaller.” This story 800k reads and was cited by People’s Daily as an example of “practical tech.”
• The Hidden Cost of Smartones: They traveled to the Democratic Republic of Congo to report on cobalt mines—where most of the world’s smartphone batteries are made. The story exposed harsh working conditions and environmental damage, but also highlighted local initiatives to make mining more ethical. It got 600k reads and led to a for more sustainable phone production.

c. Future Lab: A Glimpse into Tomorrow

Yuan News takes readers inside labs and startups see what’s next. For example:

• Lab-Grown Meat: They visited a startup in Shanghai that grows meat from animal cells. The, a former farmer, says: “I want to feed the world without killing animals.” The story explored the ethical and environmental implications of lab-grown, and how it might change the way we eat.
• Quantum Computing for Climate Change: They interviewed a team of scientists at Tsing University who are using quantum computing to model climate change. “Quantum computers can process data faster than traditional ones,” says the lead scientist. “This help us find solutions to global warming before it’s too late.”

d. Reader Voices: Your Story Matters

Yuan News encourages readers submit their own stories. For example, a reader named Wu Jia submitted a story about her brother, who uses AI to help people with autism communicate. News turned it into a feature, and Wu Jia received a free online course on AI as a reward.

What makes Yuan News unique? It doesn just tell stories— it listens. It uses narrative journalism to make complex topics accessible, and it never loses sight of the human element.

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4. Value for Fans: Knowledge, Inspiration, and Community

Yuan News offers its readers more than just stories— it offers value that changes:

a. Knowledge: Beyond Surface-Level Tech

Readers get deep, well-researched content that helps them understand tech’s. For example, their free guide “5 Ways to Use AI to Simplify Your Work Without Losing Your Humanity” has been downloaded 5k+ times. A reader named Li Jun says: “This guide helped me integrate AI into my job as a writer—now I spend less on research and more time on creative work.”

b. Inspiration: Stories That Motivate

The grandma coding story inspired many readers to learn new. A 55-year-old reader named Wang Hong commented: “I used to think I was too old to learn anything new. Now I’m an online course on digital photography.”

c. Resources: Exclusive Access to Experts

Yuan News hosts monthly webinars with top experts. For, a recent webinar with AI researcher Dr. Zhang Wei drew 10k+ attendees. Readers could ask questions like: “Will AI replace my?” and “How can I teach my kids to use AI safely?”

d. Community: Connecting Like-Minded People

Yuan News quarterly offline meetups in major cities. For example, a meetup in Shanghai brought together a quantum physicist, a rural tech teacher, and 0 readers. They discussed “tech and humanity” late into the night. A reader named Chen Ming says: “I made three new friends at theup—we still chat every week about tech and life.”

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5. Update Frequency & Interaction: Quality Over Quantity

Yuan updates 2-3 times a week—quality over quantity. Here’s their schedule:

• Wednesday: A long-form feature (200+ words) about a tech human story.
• Friday: A “Trend Snapshot” (500 words) about a tech trend with a human twist.
• Sunday: A “Reader Voice” column featuring stories from readers.

Interaction is at the heart of News. The team replies to 80%+ of comments—even the long ones. They also use polls to let readers choose topics. For, last month, readers voted to cover “tech and mental health”—so Yuan News did a series on how social media affects teenagers’ mental health. series got 400k+ reads and 15k+ comments, with many parents sharing their own experiences.

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. Key Data Performance: Viral Stories That Resonate

Yuan News has 120k+ fans and grows 5% monthly. Here are some of their most successful stories:

• The Grandma Coding Story: 1.2 million reads, 50k+ shares 2k+ comments. It went viral because it challenges stereotypes about tech and age.
• Metaverse in Healthcare: 800 reads, 30k shares. It resonated because it shows practical applications of metaverse beyond entertainment.
• Hidden Cost of Smart Ph: 600k reads, 25k shares. It exposed the ethical side of tech, which readers care deeply about.

What the secret to their success? Their stories tap into universal emotions—love, curiosity, empathy. They don’t just inform; they connect.

---## 7. Brand Cooperation & Industry Influence: Ethical Content That Makes a Difference

Yuan News partners with brands that align with their mission—s tech companies, edtech platforms, and non-profits. They have one strict rule: no editorial control from brands.

For example, their partnership GreenPhone (a sustainable phone brand) was a hit. They spent three months researching the life cycle of a phone—from cobalt mines to recycling. The series “The Hidden Journey of Your Phone” exposed the environmental cost of new gadgets, but also highlighted GreenPhone’s use of recycled. The series got 700k+ reads, and GreenPhone reported a 20% increase in inquiries about their products.

Y News also has significant industry influence. They were invited to speak at the World Internet Conference in Wuzhen, where Li Xiao gave a talk titled Tech Without Humanity Is Just Noise.” They also collaborated with UNESCO on a project called “Tech for All”—documenting how edtech tools help rural. The report led to a $1 million grant for rural edtech initiatives.

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8. Content Direction: What’s Next for Yuan News?

Yuan News plans to expand its content to cover more topics:

• Tech and Climate Change: Stories about how tech is fight global warming—from solar-powered villages to AI models that predict wildfires.
• Accessibility: More stories about tech for people with disabilitieslike apps for the deaf and blind.
• Global Stories: They plan to report on tech initiatives in other countries—like a project in Kenya uses mobile phones to deliver healthcare to remote areas.

Li Xiao says: “Our mission will never change—we want to tell stories that make tech human. In a world where tech is often seen as cold and distant, we want to remind people that it’s ultimately about us.”

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Conclusion: Yuan News Is More Than a Public Account—It’s a Movement

Yuan News isn’t just a place to read tech news.’s a place to feel connected—to the people behind tech, to the community of readers, and to the future of humanity. It’s a reminder that isn’t just about gadgets or numbers; it’s about the grandma coding for her grandson, the rural teacher using AI to change lives, and the disabledoder giving back to his community.

If you’re tired of tech news that feels empty, Yuan News is for you. It’s a breath of air—warm, heartfelt, and full of stories that will make you laugh, cry, and think.

As Li Xiao says: “Tech is tool. But the real magic is in the people who use it.” And Yuan News is here to tell their stories.

Join the community today— won’t regret