Temu’s slogan “shop like a billionaire” has captured the looks of millions through its widely seen Super Bowl ad. Originally founded in September 2022, the growing company Temu has gained popularity for its ability to provide consumers with cheap products ranging from things like clothes to household items for much cheaper than many other companies today. Temu, while suspected to be founded in China, was founded in Boston, Massachusetts, and owned by PDD Holdings; which also owns the company Pinduoduo. Pinduoduo, however, is a much similar company to that of Temu which, “has offered similar deals in China for the last few years…” and “…found success in China selling heavily discounted products straight from manufacturers to low-income buyers, as well as agricultural products to farmers” from Time. Additionally, “The company now has a market cap of $102 billion, and its stock price increased during a year in which competitors took severe hits.”
While possibly alarming that Temu is owned by a similar company originally founded in China, there has been no specific evidence that proves that the company Temu is unsafe to use for consumers in America, except for its run on collecting data from consumers through the app and a more recent lawsuit filed against the company.
“The company collects lots of personal data about users and then deploys that data to sell ads” from Time.
However, such is the case today with many companies running on citizen’s personal data to better personalize advertisements and media to the consumer, similar to companies like Facebook and Google. Except, despite surprisingly low prices for products and a generally safe interface, “The commission says Temu’s rapid success raises flags about its business practices and that its parent company, PDD Holdings was accused of “extreme overtime,” by the China Labor Watch” from CBSNews. Additionally, “The company, which also runs online retailer Pinduoduo in China, has required employees to work 380 hours per month – more than double the average in the U.S., which is about 160 hours a month or 40 hours a week – according to the commission.”
And on top of Temu’s correlation to the company Pinduoduo, a recent lawsuit has been filed against Temu stating that the company, “[Temu] gains access to ‘literally everything on your phone” from Boston25News.
And despite Temu denying the lawsuit, there is too much evidence correlating Temu to suspicious activity for it to be untrue. Because at the end of the day, if something seems too good to be true, then that’s probably the case.
