Mango Excellent Media Shares Surge 64% on AI Drama Debut

Mango Excellent Media saw a wave of buying this week. The Chinese broadcaster's stock climbed as much as 64%, marking its largest weekly increase since January 2015.

The surge lifted Mango to the top of the MSCI Asia Pacific Index, which monitors large and mid-cap stocks in the region.

Debut Ignites Buying Spree

The rally started on Aug. 31, when Mango TV aired The Later Journey to the West, described as the country's first long-form TV drama entirely created by artificial intelligence.

The series debuted under a review-while-broadcasting system. This regulatory approach allows producers to submit episodes for approval in stages, instead of completing a full season upfront. It gives creators the flexibility to modify later episodes based on viewer reactions during the broadcast.

The premiere's effect extended beyond Mango's shares. Kunlun Tech and China Literature also saw gains. Investors are wagering that AI-generated content may become the sector's next growth driver.

This surge mirrors a wider trend in 2026, where bursts of investor excitement have consistently followed advances in Chinese AI equities.

Analysts See Larger Potential

China National Radio, a state broadcaster, said about 128,000 micro-dramas entered the market in the first quarter. These are short, vertical video series favored by Chinese viewers. Among them, 95% were produced using AI.

Morgan Stanley's Rebecca Xu and her team characterized the regulatory change as a positive factor for streaming platforms.

“We see the policy shift as positive for platforms such as Mango and iQIYI amid rising competition from AI-enabled content and platforms.”

iQIYI competes directly with Mango in China's video streaming market.

Citigroup's Brian Gong and his team offered a contrasting view. They said investors are ignoring the immediate commercial potential of China's own AI video models.

According to the analysts, ByteDance's Seedance, a text-to-video generator, remains the quality standard for the industry.

Still, competitors are finding their own niches. MiniMax Group's H3 model, another text-to-video tool, delivers near-premium quality at a cheaper price. Kuaishou Technology's Kling has amassed a substantial global user base and is striving to overtake the frontrunners.

The sustainability of the rally may hinge on the show's audience reception after its first week.