As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 31, 2018

Registration No. 333-            

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, DC 20549

FORM F-1

REGISTRATION STATEMENT

UNDER

THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

LAIX Inc.

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

Not Applicable

(Translation of Registrant’s name into English)

Cayman Islands	8200	Not Applicable
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)	(Primary Standard Industrial Classification Code Number)	(I.R.S. Employer Identification Number)

3/F, Building B, No. 1687 Changyang Road, Yangpu District

Shanghai, 200090

People’s Republic of China

+86 21-3511-7188

(Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of Registrant’s principal executive offices)

Puglisi & Associates

850 Library Avenue, Suite 204

Newark, Delaware 19711

+1 302-738-6680

(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)

Copies to:

Z. Julie Gao, Esq. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP c/o 42/F, Edinburgh Tower, The Landmark 15 Queen’s Road Central Hong Kong +852 3740-4700 Haiping Li, Esq. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP c/o JingAn Kerry Centre, Tower II, 46/F 1539 Nanjing West Road Shanghai, People’s Republic of China +86 21-61938200 David Zhang, Esq. Steve Lin, Esq. Kirkland & Ellis International LLP c/o 26/F, Gloucester Tower, The Landmark 15 Queen’s Road Central Hong Kong +852 3761-3300

Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the public: as soon as practicable after the effective date of this registration statement.

If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, check the following box.	☐
If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering.	☐
If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering.	☐
If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(d) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering.	☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933. Emerging growth company	☒
If an emerging growth company that prepares its financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards† provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act.	☒
†  The term “new or revised financial accounting standard” refers to any update issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board to its Accounting Standards Codification after April 5, 2012.

CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE

Title of each class of securities to be registered	Proposed maximum aggregate offering price(2)(3)	Amount of registration fee
Class A Ordinary shares, par value US$0.001 per share(1)	US$100,000,000	US$12,450

(1) American depositary shares issuable upon deposit of Class A ordinary shares registered hereby will be registered under a separate registration statement on Form F-6 (Registration No. 333-            ). Each American depositary share represents              Class A ordinary shares.

(2) Includes Class A ordinary shares that are issuable upon the exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option. Also includes Class A ordinary shares initially offered and sold outside the United States that may be resold from time to time in the United States either as part of their distribution or within 40 days after the later of the effective date of this registration statement and the date the shares are first bona fide offered to the public. These Class A ordinary shares are not being registered for the purpose of sales outside the United States.

(3) Estimated solely for the purpose of determining the amount of registration fee in accordance with Rule 457(o) under the Securities Act of 1933.

The Registrant hereby amends this Registration Statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the Registrant shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this Registration Statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 or until the Registration Statement shall become effective on such date as the Securities and Exchange Commission, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine.

The information in this preliminary prospectus is not complete and may be changed. These securities may not be sold until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This preliminary prospectus is not an offer to sell nor does it seek an offer to buy these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted.

Subject to Completion. Dated                 , 2018.

American Depositary Shares

LAIX Inc.

Representing                  Class A Ordinary Shares

This is an initial public offering of                  American depositary shares, or ADSs, by LAIX Inc. Each ADS represents                  of our Class A ordinary shares, par value US$0.001 per share.

Prior to this offering, there has been no public market for the ADSs or our shares. We anticipate that the initial public offering price will be between US$                 and US$                 per ADS. We intend to apply to list the ADSs on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “LAIX.”

We are an “emerging growth company” under applicable U.S. federal securities laws and are eligible for reduced public company reporting requirements.

Our outstanding share capital consists of Class A ordinary shares and Class B ordinary shares, each currently entitled to one vote. Immediately after the completion of this offering, each Class B ordinary share will become entitled to ten votes, whereas each Class A ordinary share will continue to be entitled to one vote. Our three founders, Dr. Yi Wang, Mr. Zheren Hu and Dr. Hui Lin, beneficially own all of our issued Class B ordinary shares. These Class B ordinary shares will constitute approximately        % of our total issued and outstanding share capital immediately after the completion of this offering and        % of the aggregate voting power of our total issued and outstanding share capital immediately after the completion of this offering, assuming the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option. Each Class B ordinary share is convertible into one Class A ordinary share at any time by the holder thereof. Class A ordinary shares are not convertible into Class B ordinary shares under any circumstances. Holders of Class A ordinary shares and Class B ordinary shares have the same rights except for voting and conversion rights.

Investing in our ADSs involve risks. See “Risk Factors ” beginning on page 15.

Neither the United States Securities and Exchange Commission nor any other regulatory body has approved or disapproved of these securities, or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

PRICE US$                 PER ADS

	Initial Public Offering Price	Underwriting Discounts and Commissions(1)	Proceeds to us
Per ADS	US$	US$	US$
Total	US$	US$	US$

(1)    For a description of compensation payable to the underwriters, see “Underwriting.”

The underwriters have an over-allotment option to purchase up to an additional                  ADSs from us at the initial public offering price, less the underwriting discounts and commissions, within 30 days from the date of this prospectus.

The underwriters expect to deliver the ADSs against payment in U.S. dollars in New York, New York on or about                 , 2018.

MORGAN STANLEY GOLDMAN SACHS (ASIA) L.L.C.

Prospectus dated                 , 2018.

Chainas First Al English Teacher1English Learning Strong demand from younger generation aspiring to a global lifestyle Al Teacher Brand new approach to education without relying on human teachers Mobile Internet Access to affordable education anywhere, at anytime Freemium ModelAttract users with free services and convert them into paying users 83.8MM2Registered Users 1.0 MM3Paying Users 60+ Minutes Average Daily Time Spent per User417.5 Bn Sentences2User Conversations Recorded 1.3 Bn Minutes2User Conversations Recorded1 According to the iResearch Report2 As of June 30, 20183 In the first half of 20184 Average time spent by users taking DongNi English standard courses per active day in 2017 and the six months ended June 30, 2018

TABLE OF CONTENTS

	Page
PROSPECTUS SUMMARY		1
THE OFFERING		8
SUMMARY CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL DATA		11
RISK FACTORS		15
SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS		56
USE OF PROCEEDS		57
DIVIDEND POLICY		59
CAPITALIZATION		60
DILUTION		62
EXCHANGE RATE INFORMATION		64
ENFORCEABILITY OF CIVIL LIABILITIES		65
CORPORATE HISTORY AND STRUCTURE		67
SELECTED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL DATA		71
MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS		74
INDUSTRY		96
BUSINESS		102
REGULATION		120
MANAGEMENT		137
PRINCIPAL SHAREHOLDERS		145
RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS		148
DESCRIPTION OF SHARE CAPITAL		149
DESCRIPTION OF AMERICAN DEPOSITARY SHARES		160
SHARES ELIGIBLE FOR FUTURE SALES		170
TAXATION		172
UNDERWRITING		178
EXPENSES RELATED TO THIS OFFERING		189
LEGAL MATTERS		190
EXPERTS		191
WHERE YOU CAN FIND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION		192
INDEX TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS		F-1

No dealer, salesperson or other person is authorized to give any information or to represent anything not contained in this prospectus or in any free writing prospectus we may authorize to be delivered or made available to you. You must not rely on any unauthorized information or representations. This prospectus is an offer to sell only the ADSs offered hereby, but only under circumstances and in jurisdictions where it is lawful to do so. The information contained in this prospectus is current only as of its date.

Neither we nor any of the underwriters has done anything that would permit this offering or possession or distribution of this prospectus or any filed free writing prospectus in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required, other than in the United States. Persons outside the United States who come into possession of this prospectus or any filed free writing prospectus must inform themselves about, and observe any restrictions relating to, the offering of the ADSs and the distribution of this prospectus or any filed free writing prospectus outside of the United States.

Until              , 2018 (the 25th day after the date of this prospectus), all dealers that buy, sell or trade ADSs, whether or not participating in this offering, may be required to deliver a prospectus. This is in addition to the obligation of dealers to deliver a prospectus when acting as underwriters and with respect to their unsold allotments or subscriptions.

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PROSPECTUS SUMMARY

The following summary is qualified in its entirety by, and should be read in conjunction with, the more detailed information and financial statements appearing elsewhere in this prospectus. In addition to this summary, we urge you to read the entire prospectus carefully, especially the risks of investing in our ADSs discussed under “Risk Factors,” before deciding whether to buy our ADSs. This prospectus contains information from an industry report commissioned by us and prepared by iResearch, an independent research firm, to provide information regarding our industry and our market position in China. We refer to this report as the “iResearch Report.” We also procured certain data included in this prospectus from QuestMobile, an independent research firm. This prospectus also contains information and statistics relating to China’s economy and the industries in which we operate which are derived from various publications issued by market research companies, international institutions and the PRC governmental entities, and have not been independently verified by us, the underwriters or any of their respective affiliates or advisers. The information in such sources may not be consistent with other information compiled in or outside of China.

Our Mission

Empower everyone to achieve their full potential and become a global citizen.

Our Business

We are a leading artificial intelligence (AI) company in China that creates and delivers products and services to popularize English learning. Our proprietary AI teacher utilizes cutting-edge deep learning and adaptive learning technologies, big data, well-established education pedagogies and the mobile internet. We believe our innovative approach fundamentally transforms learning. We were named on the list of “The 100 Most Promising Private Artificial Intelligence Companies in the World” for 2018 by CB Insights. We were one of seven companies from China on the list and the only Chinese company out of the two in the education category globally. We were also named on the list of “50 Most Innovative Companies” for 2018 by Forbes China.

Today we live in a global community where people are increasingly interconnected. English fluency is essential for communications across the globe, has a large impact on individual career advancement and is an important enabler of a global lifestyle in the modern world. However, the traditional approach to English learning with human teachers teaching in physical classrooms is constrained by a shortage in high-quality teachers as well as time-and-space limitations.

Our founders identified the industry’s key pain points and offer a groundbreaking new approach to education. Since our inception in 2013, we have built our AI-powered Liulishuo platform to deliver a user-centric, personalized and effective English learning experience accessible to anyone, anywhere, at anytime. Our model is cost-effective, enabling us to offer affordable course packages at a massive scale. Our business has grown rapidly, and our AI-powered education approach has received wide acceptance. As of June 30, 2018, we had 83.8 million cumulative registered users in China and globally.

We have built our AI teacher incorporating the key characteristics and core functions of high-quality, effective teachers. We conducted deep analysis of and integrated into our products the pedagogies developed by the world’s leading educational experts and cognitive scientists. Our AI teacher was built on cutting-edge proprietary AI technologies that provide personalized teaching and guidance for all core components of a student’s language learning process, encompassing learning, practice, assessment and feedback. Our AI teacher can hear, understand, interact with and evaluate the performance of our users and has the ability to understand their learning needs. Leveraging our massive volume of smart user data, our AI teacher continuously evolves and delivers more personally tailored learning programs to each user.

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We provide our products and services on-demand via our mobile apps, primarily our flagship “English Liulishuo” mobile app launched in 2013. On our platform, AI technologies are seamlessly integrated with diverse learning content incorporating well-established language learning pedagogies, gamified features and strong social elements to deliver an engaging, adaptive learning experience. We are committed to offering a fun, interactive learning environment to motivate and engage our users. We provide a variety of courses inspired by a broad range of topics and culture themes to make English learning more interesting. Our online study advisors organize online study groups, monitor users’ learning progress, answer user queries and send individualized, motivating messages to users. They add a human touch to our users’ learning experience, which enhances user engagement and user retention.

Our business model is highly scalable and has powerful network effects, which has enabled us to develop a large and rapidly growing user base. The number of our average monthly active users increased from 2.0 million in 2016 to 4.4 million in 2017, and further increased to 7.2 million in the first half of 2018. Our freemium model allows us to attract users with free services and convert them into paying users. We began monetization in 2016 and had approximately 70,500 paying users who purchased courses and services on our platform in that year. The number of paying users who purchased courses and services on our platform in 2017 increased rapidly to approximately 815,700. For the six months ended June 30, 2018, we had approximately 1,016,100 paying users purchase our courses and services. We also started providing enterprise learning services in January 2017 and had over 100 corporate customers as of June 30, 2018. As a result of the foregoing, our revenues increased substantially from RMB12.3 million in 2016 to RMB165.6 million (US$25.4 million) in 2017, and also from RMB40.1 million in the first half of 2017 to RMB232.3 million (US$35.1 million) in the first half of 2018. We incurred net losses of RMB242.8 million (US$37.3 million) in 2017 and RMB182.3 million (US$27.5 million) in the first half of 2018, as compared to net losses of RMB89.2 million in 2016 and RMB67.3 million in the first half of 2017.

Our Industry

AI has emerged as a major transformative technology and it is starting to enable the proliferation of intelligent apps in a variety of fields. The rapid growth and development of the AI industry has been mainly driven by advances in deep learning algorithms, improved chips that can support the robust computing needs of AI, and the availability of big data due to the wide adoption of mobile devices. China increasingly is playing a leading role in the global AI industry. China’s AI industry has experienced rapid growth over the past few years, increasing from a total market size of RMB6.2 billion in 2013 to RMB36.5 billion in 2017, representing a CAGR of 55.7%, and is expected to further grow to RMB814.0 billion in 2022, representing a CAGR of 86.2% from 2018 to 2022. The AI industry in China has received significant support from the government and investment from the private sector.

English language learning represents one of the most attractive and promising sectors in China’s education market. It is estimated that there were 438 million English language learners in China in 2017, and demand for English learning products and services continues to grow as more and more people aspire to improve their language skills. In addition, younger Chinese consumers in particular increasingly desire to learn English in order to improve their general proficiency rather than for specific examination preparation. According to the iResearch Report, the size of the English language learning market, as measured by revenues, reached approximately RMB228.8 billion in 2017. The market size is expected to continue to grow to RMB548.8 billion in 2022, representing a CAGR of 19.6% from 2018 to 2022. As a further indicator of the prominence Chinese society places on English language learning, the Chinese government published its own standard in June 2018 with a focus on English language capabilities, to further improve the evaluation of the English language in China and the ability of Chinese to use the language in real-world settings.

Over time, China’s education market has been impacted and transformed by the introduction of new technologies that change the way people learn. With the acceleration of AI technology, we believe we are now

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entering the third phase of development, Education 3.0, which will bring significant improvements to the effectiveness and efficiency of education when compared to the offline (Education 1.0) and online human teacher-based (Education 2.0) models that have preceded it. Through the Education 3.0 model, AI-powered learning products and services serve as a supplement to or sometimes even a replacement for human teachers. AI-powered learning products and services can provide a personal learning experience similar to, or even better than, what the majority of human teachers can provide.

The benefits of AI technology applications in education are significant. Perhaps most importantly, AI can complement and even fully replace many of the functions served by teachers. AI can assess learner proficiency, provide real-time feedback on performance and curate and deliver educational content in a personalized manner. Furthermore, an AI-powered online education platform can be built on the shared knowledge and expertise of all of the best education researchers and teachers in the world, thereby delivering the very best in learning methodologies to every learner. Given the broad potential for AI applications for learning, AI-powered online education has a large total addressable market and high growth potential globally and in China. According to the iResearch Report, the size of the AI-powered online education market in China, as measured by revenue, reached approximately RMB3.7 billion in 2017. The market size is expected to continue to grow to RMB172.4 billion in 2022, representing a CAGR of 118.3% from 2018 to 2022.

Our Strengths

We believe that the following competitive strengths contribute to our success and differentiate us from our competitors:

• innovative AI-powered platform that is fundamentally transforming learning;

• cutting-edge proprietary AI technologies;

• strong product development capabilities underpinned by education pedagogies and data;

• highly scalable business model with powerful network effects;

• significant market opportunities in English language learning and beyond; and

• visionary management team with strong execution capabilities.

Our Strategies

We intend to achieve our goals by pursuing the following strategies:

• grow user base and enhance user engagement;

• enhance the AI and machine learning capabilities of our platform;

• further develop our products and enrich our content;

• expand beyond English language learning across the world;

• build a household brand; and

• strengthen our capabilities through investments and strategic partnerships.

Our Challenges

Our ability to realize our mission and execute our strategies is subject to risks and uncertainties, including those relating to our ability to:

• attain profitability;

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• achieve wider acceptance of our AI-powered education approach;

• develop and innovate our technologies and platform;

• attract and retain users;

• provide an effective learning experience and convert non-paying into paying users;

• sustain our growth and manage the increasing complexity of our business;

• compete effectively; and

• adapt to industry development and regulatory changes.

Please see “Risk Factors,” “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and other information included in this prospectus for a discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties that we face.

Corporate History and Structure

We commenced our operations and launched our flagship “English Liulishuo” mobile app in 2013. Our three founders are Dr. Yi Wang, Mr. Zheren Hu and Dr. Hui Lin.

In August 2013, we incorporated LAIX Inc. (formerly known as LingoChamp Inc.) under the laws of the Cayman Islands as our offshore holding company. In the same month, LAIX Inc. established a wholly-owned Hong Kong subsidiary, LingoChamp (HK) Limited, or LingoChamp HK. In November 2013, LingoChamp HK established a wholly-owned PRC subsidiary, Yuguan Information Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., which we refer to as Yuguan or our WFOE in this prospectus. In October 2015, LingoChamp HK also established a wholly-owned PRC subsidiary, Yuling Cultural Communication (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., or Yuling. In August 2017, LAIX Inc. established a wholly-owned Delaware subsidiary, LingoChamp US, Inc., to operate our Silicon Valley AI Lab.

Due to restrictions imposed by PRC laws and regulations on foreign ownership of companies that engage in internet and other related business, we conduct such business in China through a variable interest entity structure. We currently conduct substantially all of our operations in China through Shanghai Liulishuo Information and Technology Co., Ltd., or Shanghai Liulishuo. We intend to further expand operations in China through Shanghai Mengfan Cultural Communication Co., Ltd., or Shanghai Mengfan, and Jiangsu Liulishuo Education Technology Co., Ltd., or Jiangsu Liulishuo, and have established variable interest entity contractual arrangements with these two entities. We collectively refer to Shanghai Liulishuo, Shanghai Mengfan and Jiangsu Liulishuo as our VIEs in this prospectus. Shanghai Liulishuo was established in 2013 when we commenced our operations, Shanghai Mengfan was established in December 2014, and Jiangsu Liulishuo was established in January 2018. Our WFOE has entered into variable interest entity contractual arrangements with each of our VIEs and their respective shareholders. For more details, please see “Corporate History and Structure—Contractual Arrangements with Our VIEs and Their Respective Shareholders.” As a result of our direct ownership in our WFOE and the variable interest entity contractual arrangements, we are regarded as the primary beneficiary of our VIEs. We treat them and their subsidiaries as our variable interest entities under U.S. GAAP, and have consolidated the financial results of these entities in our consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

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The following diagram illustrates our corporate structure, including our principal subsidiaries and our VIEs, as of the date of this prospectus:

Notes:

(1) Represents the 11,753,847 Class B ordinary shares beneficially owned by Dr. Yi Wang, one of our founders, as of the date of this prospectus, each of which will be entitled to ten votes upon the completion of this offering on all matters submitted to the shareholders for a vote. Dr. Yi Wang will be able to exercise approximately     % of the aggregate voting power of our issued and outstanding share capital immediately after the completion of this offering, assuming the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option. Please refer to the beneficial ownership table in the section headed “Principal Shareholders” for more information on beneficial ownership of Dr. Yi Wang in our company prior to and immediately after this offering.

(2) Represents the 5,010,931 Class B ordinary shares beneficially owned by Mr. Zheren Hu, one of our founders, as of the date of this prospectus, each of which will be entitled to ten votes upon the completion of this offering on all matters submitted to the shareholders for a vote. Mr. Zheren Hu will be able to exercise approximately     % of the aggregate voting power of our issued and outstanding share capital immediately after the completion of this offering, assuming the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option. Please refer to the beneficial ownership table in the section headed “Principal Shareholders” for more information on beneficial ownership of Mr. Zheren Hu in our company prior to and immediately after this offering.

(3) Represents the 2,910,896 Class B ordinary shares beneficially owned by Dr. Hui Lin, one of our founders, as of the date of this prospectus, each of which will be entitled to ten votes upon the completion of this offering on all matters submitted to the shareholders for a vote. Dr. Hui Lin will be able to exercise approximately     % of the aggregate voting power of our issued and outstanding share capital immediately after the completion of this offering, assuming the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option. Please refer to the beneficial ownership table in the section headed “Principal Shareholders” for more information on beneficial ownership of Dr. Hui Lin in our company prior to and immediately after this offering.

(4) Dr. Yi Wang, Mr. Zheren Hu, Dr. Hui Lin, Zhuhai Xinran Consulting and Management Co., Ltd., Ningbo Meishan Bonded Port Zhimei Fifth Equity Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership), Jiwei Enterprise Management and Consulting (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Mr. Gu Jiong, and two other shareholders hold 37.32%, 10.51%, 6.11%, 11.88%, 11.88%, 10.38%, 5.56% and 6.36% equity interests in Shanghai Liulishuo, respectively. Among them, Dr. Yi Wang, Mr. Zheren Hu, Dr. Hui Lin are beneficial owners, directors and officers of our company; Zhuhai Xinran Consulting and Management Co., Ltd. is an affiliate of the IDG entities that are beneficial owners of our company; Ningbo Meishan Bonded Port Zhimei Fifth Equity Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership) is an affiliate of Trustbridge Partners V, L.P., a beneficial owner of our company; Jiwei Enterprise Management and Consulting (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. is an affiliate of the GGV entities that are beneficial owners of our company; Mr. Gu Jiong is an affiliated person of CMC Lullaby Holdings Limited, a

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beneficial owner of our company; and the other two shareholders are affiliates of certain beneficial owners of our company. Each of Shanghai Mengfan and Jiangsu Liulishuo has the same shareholding structure as Shanghai Liulishuo.

Implication of Being an Emerging Growth Company

As a company with less than US$1.07 billion in revenue for our last fiscal year, we qualify as an “emerging growth company” pursuant to the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012, as amended, or the JOBS Act. An emerging growth company may take advantage of specified reduced reporting and other requirements compared to those that are otherwise applicable generally to public companies. These provisions include exemption from the auditor attestation requirement under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 in the assessment of the emerging growth company’s internal control over financial reporting. The JOBS Act also provides that an emerging growth company does not need to comply with any new or revised financial accounting standards until such date that a private company is otherwise required to comply with such new or revised accounting standards. However, we have elected to “opt out” of this provision and, as a result, we will comply with new or revised accounting standards as required when they are adopted for public companies. This decision to opt out of the extended transition period under the JOBS Act is irrevocable.

We will remain an emerging growth company until the earliest of (a) the last day of the fiscal year during which we have total annual gross revenues of at least US$1.07 billion; (b) the last day of our fiscal year following the fifth anniversary of the completion of this offering; (c) the date on which we have, during the preceding three-year period, issued more than US$1.0 billion in non-convertible debt; or (d) the date on which we are deemed to be a “large accelerated filer” under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act, which would occur if the market value of our ADSs that are held by non-affiliates exceeds US$700 million as of the last business day of our most recently completed second fiscal quarter. Once we cease to be an emerging growth company, we will not be entitled to the exemptions provided in the JOBS Act discussed above.

Corporate Information

Our principal executive offices are located at 3/F, Building B, No. 1687 Changyang Road, Yangpu District, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China. Our telephone number at this address is +86 21-3511-7188. Our registered office in the Cayman Islands is located at the office of Maples Corporate Services Limited, PO Box 309, Ugland House, Grand Cayman, KY1-1104, Cayman Islands.

Investors should submit any inquiries to the address and telephone number of our principal executive offices. Our main website is www.liulishuo.com. The information contained on our website is not a part of this prospectus. Our agent for service of process in the United States is Puglisi & Associates, located at 850 Library Avenue, Suite 204, Newark, Delaware 19711.

Conventions that Apply to this Prospectus

Unless otherwise indicated or the context otherwise requires, references in this prospectus to:

• “ADRs” are to the American depositary receipts that evidence our ADSs;

• “ADSs” are to our American depositary shares, each of which represents              Class A ordinary shares;

• “LAIX,” “we,” “us,” “our company” and “our” are to LAIX Inc., its subsidiaries and its VIEs;

• “China” or the “PRC” are to the People’s Republic of China, excluding, for the purposes of this prospectus only, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan;

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• “monthly active users” or “MAUs” are to the number of registered users that launched our mobile app during a given month; we derive the average monthly active users in a certain period by computing the average of monthly active users of all months in that period;

• “paying users” for a certain period are to users who make payments for any of our courses and services during that period; a user who makes payments across different courses and services offered on the same mobile app using the same registered account is counted as one paying user; a user who makes payments for the same course or service multiple times in the same period is counted as one paying user;

• “gross billings” for a certain period are to the total amount of cash received from the sale of course packages in that period, net of the total amount of cash refunds paid to users in the same period;

• “RMB” and “Renminbi” are to the legal currency of China;

• “Class A ordinary shares” are to our Class A ordinary shares, par value US$0.001 per share;

• “Class B ordinary shares” are to our Class B ordinary shares, par value US$0.001 per share;

• “shares” or “ordinary shares” are to our Class A and Class B ordinary shares, par value US$0.001 per share; and

• “US$,” “U.S. dollars,” “$,” and “dollars” are to the legal currency of the United States.

We also refer to the following terms in this prospectus:

• “AppBase Mix” refers to a comprehensive strength index for mobile applications introduced by Testin Data, a mobile application testing services provider;

• “CB Insights” refers to a U.S.-based technology company that tracks private companies, investments and acquisitions. Its list of “The 100 Most Promising Private Artificial Intelligence Companies in the World” is well recognized in naming the teams and technologies that are successfully using AI to solve big challenges; and

• “Knowledge tracing” means modeling user knowledge over time as they interact with coursework so that we can accurately predict how users will perform on future interactions.

Unless the context indicates otherwise, all information in this prospectus assumes no exercise by the underwriters of their over-allotment option.

Our reporting currency is the Renminbi. This prospectus also contains translations of certain foreign currency amounts into U.S. dollars for the convenience of the reader. Unless otherwise stated, all translations from Renminbi to U.S. dollars were made at the end of the applicable period, that is, RMB6.5063 to US$1.00, the noon buying rate on December 29, 2017, or RMB6.6171 to US$1.00, the noon buying rate on June 29, 2018, in each case as set forth in the H.10 statistical release of the Federal Reserve Board. We make no representation that the Renminbi or U.S. dollar amounts referred to in this prospectus could have been or could be converted into U.S. dollars or Renminbi, as the case may be, at any particular rate or at all. On August 24, 2018, the noon buying rate for Renminbi was RMB6.8030 to US$1.00.

7

THE OFFERING

Offering price	We currently estimate that the initial public offering price will be between US$             and US$             per ADS.
ADSs offered by us	ADSs (or             ADSs if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full).
ADSs outstanding immediately after this offering	ADSs (or             ADSs if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full)
Ordinary shares outstanding immediately after this offering	ordinary shares, comprised of             Class A ordinary shares and             Class B ordinary shares (or            ordinary shares if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full, comprised of             Class A ordinary shares and             Class B ordinary shares). This number assumes the conversion, on a one-for-one basis, of all outstanding preferred shares into ordinary shares immediately upon the completion of this offering.
The ADSs	Each ADS represents             Class A ordinary shares, par value US$0.001 per share. The depositary will hold Class A ordinary shares underlying your ADSs. You will have rights as provided in the deposit agreement among us, the depositary and holders and beneficial owners of ADSs from time to time. We do not expect to pay dividends in the foreseeable future. If, however, we declare dividends on our Class A ordinary shares, the depositary will pay you the cash dividends and other distributions it receives on our Class A ordinary shares after deducting its fees and expenses in accordance with the terms set forth in the deposit agreement. You may turn in your ADSs to the depositary in exchange for Class A ordinary shares. The depositary will charge you fees for any exchange. We may amend or terminate the deposit agreement without your consent. If you continue to hold your ADSs after an amendment to the deposit agreement, you agree to be bound by the deposit agreement as amended.

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	To better understand the terms of the ADSs, you should carefully read the “Description of American Depositary Shares” section of this prospectus. You should also read the deposit agreement, which is filed as an exhibit to the registration statement that includes this prospectus.
Ordinary shares	Our outstanding share capital consists of Class A ordinary shares and Class B ordinary shares, each currently entitled to one vote. Immediately after the completion of this offering, each Class B ordinary share will become entitled to ten votes, whereas each Class A ordinary share will continue to be entitled to one vote. Each Class B ordinary share is convertible into one Class A ordinary share at any time by the holder thereof. Class A ordinary shares are not convertible into Class B ordinary shares under any circumstances. Holders of Class A ordinary shares and Class B ordinary shares will have the same rights except for voting and conversion rights. [Upon any sale of Class B ordinary shares by a holder thereof to any person other than Dr. Yi Wang, Mr. Zheren Hu, Dr. Hui Lin or any entity which is not ultimately controlled by any of them, such Class B ordinary shares shall be automatically and immediately converted into the same number of Class A ordinary shares.] For a description of Class A ordinary shares and Class B ordinary shares, see “Description of Share Capital.”
Over-allotment option	We have granted to the underwriters an option, exercisable within 30 days from the date of this prospectus, to purchase up to an aggregate of              additional ADSs.
Use of proceeds	We expect that we will receive net proceeds of approximately US$             million from this offering, or approximately US$             million if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full, assuming an initial public offering price of US$             per ADS, which is the midpoint of the estimated range of the initial public offering price, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us. We intend to use the net proceeds from this offering for (i) research and development, (ii) selling and marketing, and (iii) general corporate purposes and working capital, including potential strategic

9

	investments and acquisitions. See “Use of Proceeds” for more information.
Lock-up	[We, our officers, directors, shareholders and certain option holders have agreed with the underwriters not to sell, transfer or dispose of any ADSs, ordinary shares or similar securities or any securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for our ordinary shares or ADSs, for a period of 180 days after the date of this prospectus. See “Shares Eligible for Future Sale” and “Underwriting.”]
Risk Factors	See “Risk Factors” and other information included in this prospectus for a discussion of risks you should carefully consider before investing in the ADSs.
Listing	We intend to apply to have the ADSs listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “LAIX.” Our ADSs and shares will not be listed on any other stock exchange or traded on any automated quotation system.
Payment and settlement	The underwriters expect to deliver the ADSs against payment therefor through the facilities of the Depository Trust Company on             , 2018.
Depositary	Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas

The number of ordinary shares that will be outstanding immediately after this offering:

• is based on 42,202,231 ordinary shares outstanding as of the date of this prospectus, including (i) 22,526,557 Class A ordinary shares, assuming the automatic conversion of all of our outstanding Series Seed, Series A, Series B and Series C preferred shares into 22,367,696 Class A ordinary shares immediately prior to the completion of this offering, and (ii) 19,675,674 Class B ordinary shares;

• includes              Class A ordinary shares in the form of ADSs that we will issue and sell in this offering, assuming the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option to purchase additional ADSs; and

• excludes 5,456,192 Class A ordinary shares reserved for future issuances under our 2014 Equity Incentive Plan and 5% of the total number of shares issued and outstanding immediately after this offering reserved for future issuances under our 2018 Share Incentive Plan, including 4,914,974 Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of options outstanding as of the date of this prospectus.

10

SUMMARY CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL DATA

The following summary consolidated comprehensive loss data for the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2017, summary consolidated balance sheet data as of December 31, 2016 and 2017 and summary consolidated cash flow data for the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2017 have been derived from our audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this prospectus. The following summary consolidated comprehensive loss data for the six months ended June 30, 2017 and 2018, summary consolidated balance sheet data as of June 30, 2018, and summary consolidated cash flow data for the six months ended June 30, 2017 and 2018 have been derived from our unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this prospectus and have been prepared on the same basis as our audited consolidated financial statements and include all adjustments, consisting only of normal and recurring adjustments, that we consider necessary for a fair statement of our financial position and operating results for the periods presented. Our consolidated financial statements are prepared and presented in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America, or U.S. GAAP. Our historical results are not necessarily indicative of results expected for future periods. You should read this Summary Consolidated Financial Data section together with our consolidated financial statements and the related notes and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” included elsewhere in this prospectus.

	Year Ended December 31,									Six Months Ended June 30,
	2016			2017						2017			2018
	RMB			RMB			US$			RMB			RMB			US$
	(in thousands, except for share and per share data)
Summary Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Loss:
Net revenues		12,332			165,561			25,446			40,061			232,308			35,107
Cost of revenues(1)		(27,503	)		(57,691	)		(8,867	)		(22,110	)		(55,007	)		(8,313	)
Gross (loss)/profit		(15,171	)		107,870			16,579			17,951			177,301			26,794
Operating expenses:
Sales and marketing expenses(1)		(28,534	)		(283,055	)		(43,505	)		(62,935	)		(259,849	)		(39,269	)
Research and development expenses(1)		(30,013	)		(53,162	)		(8,171	)		(19,648	)		(60,941	)		(9,210	)
General and administrative expenses(1)		(8,754	)		(19,807	)		(3,044	)		(6,958	)		(26,291	)		(3,973	)
Total operating expenses		(67,301	)		(356,024	)		(54,720	)		(89,541	)		(347,081	)		(52,452	)
Loss from operations		(82,472	)		(248,154	)		(38,141	)		(71,590	)		(169,780	)		(25,658	)
Other income/(expenses):
Interest income		2,671			934			144			509			1,406			213
Foreign exchange related (losses)/gains, net		(9,839	)		7,145			1,098			3,658			(828	)		(125	)
Change in fair value of short-term investment		59			750			115			—			—			—
Other income/(expenses), net		412			2,172			334			1,469			(604	)		(92	)
Net loss before tax		(89,169	)		(237,153	)		(36,450	)		(65,954	)		(169,806	)		(25,662	)
Income tax expense		—			(5,606	)		(862	)		(1,315	)		(12,456	)		(1,882	)
Net loss		(89,169	)		(242,759	)		(37,312	)		(67,269	)		(182,262	)		(27,544	)
Series A Preferred share redemption value accretion		(3,601	)		(3,105	)		(477	)		(1,815	)		(1,313	)		(198	)
Series B Preferred share redemption value accretion		(11,548	)		(12,565	)		(1,931	)		(6,077	)		(6,705	)		(1,013	)
Series C Preferred share redemption value accretion		—			(11,147	)		(1,713	)		(934	)		(10,520	)		(1,591	)
Net loss attributable to ordinary shareholders		(104,318	)		(269,576	)		(41,433	)		(76,095	)		(200,800	)		(30,346	)
Foreign currency translation adjustment, net of nil tax		12,995			(24,983	)		(3,839	)		(6,173	)		2,596			392
Comprehensive loss		(76,174	)		(267,742	)		(41,151	)		(73,442	)		(179,666	)		(27,152	)
Net loss per ordinary share attributable to ordinary shareholders
—Basic and Diluted		(5.28	)		(13.59	)		(2.09	)		(3.85	)		(10.12	)		(1.53	)
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in per share calculation
—Basic and Diluted		19,770,990			19,834,535			19,834,535			19,775,878			19,834,535			19,834,535

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Note:

(1) Including share-based compensation expenses as follows:

	Year Ended December 31,						Six Months Ended June 30,
	2016		2017				2017		2018
	RMB		RMB		US$		RMB		RMB		US$
	(in thousands)
Cost of revenues		1,257		1,341		206		1,009		588		89
Sales and marketing expenses		839		2,380		366		874		2,182		330
Research and development expenses		2,285		3,799		584		1,718		12,592		1,903
General and administrative expenses		139		997		153		152		4,301		650
Total		4,520		8,517		1,309		3,753		19,663		2,972

The following table presents our summary consolidated balance sheet data as of the dates indicated:

	As of December 31,									As of June 30,
	2016			2017						2018
										Actual						Pro forma(1)				Pro forma as adjusted(2)
	RMB			RMB			US$			RMB			US$			RMB		US$		RMB	US$
	(in thousands)
Summary Consolidated Balance Sheet:
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents		41,301			416,483			64,012			378,372			57,181			378,372		57,181
Short-term investments		121,336			35,422			5,444			—			—			—		—
Accounts receivable, net		—			7,236			1,112			11,434			1,728			11,434		1,728
Prepayments and other current assets		2,959			21,907			3,367			46,873			7,084			46,873		7,084
Total current assets		165,596			481,048			73,935			436,679			65,993			436,679		65,993
Total assets		167,214			494,325			75,976			467,368			70,630			467,368		70,630
Total current liabilities		44,807			288,499			44,341			421,342			63,675			421,342		63,675
Total liabilities		46,307			290,407			44,634			423,452			63,994			423,452		63,994
Total mezzanine equity		286,946			651,904			100,196			670,443			101,320			—		—
Total shareholders’ (deficits)/equity		(166,039	)		(447,986	)		(68,854	)		(626,527	)		(94,684	)		43,916		6,636

Notes:

(1) The summary consolidated balance sheet data as of June 30, 2018 is presented on a pro forma basis to reflect the automatic conversion of all of our outstanding Series Seed preferred shares into 3,645,501 Class A ordinary shares, Series A preferred shares into 5,531,104 Class A ordinary shares, Series B preferred shares into 7,895,711 Class A ordinary shares and Series C preferred shares into 5,295,380 Class A ordinary shares upon the completion of this offering.

(2) The summary consolidated balance sheet data as of June 30, 2018 is presented on a pro forma as adjusted basis to reflect (i) the automatic conversion of all of our outstanding Series Seed preferred shares into 3,645,501 Class A ordinary shares, Series A preferred shares into 5,531,104 Class A ordinary shares, Series B preferred shares into 7,895,711 Class A ordinary shares and Series C preferred shares into 5,295,380 Class A ordinary shares upon the completion of this offering; and (ii) the sale of              Class A ordinary shares in the form of ADSs by us in this offering at an assumed initial public offering price of US$             per ADS, the mid-point of the estimated range of the initial public offering price shown on the front cover of this prospectus, after deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us, assuming the underwriters do not exercise the over-allotment option.

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The following table presents our summary consolidated cash flow data for the periods indicated:

	Year Ended December 31,									Six Months Ended June 30,
	2016			2017						2017			2018
	RMB			RMB			US$			RMB			RMB			US$
	(in thousands)
Summary Consolidated Cash Flow Data:
Net cash used in operating activities		(38,591	)		(60,120	)		(9,240	)		(9,581	)		(61,949	)		(9,362	)
Net cash (used in)/ provided by investing activities		(121,677	)		69,901			10,744			119,128			22,223			3,359
Net cash provided by/(used in) financing activities		—			377,191			57,973			324,623			(798	)		(121	)
Net (decrease)/increase in cash and cash equivalents		(160,268	)		386,972			59,477			434,170			(40,524	)		(6,124	)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents		2,312			(11,790	)		(1,813	)		(2,420	)		2,413			365
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the period		199,257			41,301			6,348			41,301			416,483			62,940
Cash and cash equivalents at end of the period		41,301			416,483			64,012			473,051			378,372			57,181

Non-GAAP Measures

We use adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net loss, each a non-GAAP financial measure, in evaluating our operating results and for financial and operational decision-making purposes.

We believe that adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net loss help identify underlying trends in our business that could otherwise be distorted by the effect of certain expenses that we include in loss from operations and net loss. We believe that adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net loss provide useful information about our results of operations, enhance the overall understanding of our past performance and future prospects and allow for greater visibility with respect to key metrics used by our management in its financial and operational decision-making.

Adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net loss should not be considered in isolation or construed as an alternative to loss from operations, net loss or any other measure of performance or as an indicator of our operating performance. Investors are encouraged to review the historical non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures. Adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net loss presented here may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies. Other companies may calculate similarly titled measures differently, limiting their usefulness as comparative measures to our data. We encourage investors and others to review our financial information in its entirety and not rely on a single financial measure.

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Adjusted EBITDA represents net loss excluding share-based compensation expenses, depreciation, amortization, interest income and income tax. The table below sets forth a reconciliation of our net loss to adjusted EBITDA for the periods indicated:

	Year Ended December 31,									Six Months Ended June 30,
	2016			2017						2017			2018
	RMB			RMB			US$			RMB			RMB			US$
	(in thousands)
Net loss		(89,169	)		(242,759	)		(37,312	)		(67,269	)		(182,262	)		(27,544	)
Add:
Share-based compensation expenses		4,520			8,517			1,309			3,753			19,663			2,972
Depreciation of property, plant and equipment		550			1,027			158			381			2,036			308
Amortization of prepaid interest expense and service fees to loan companies		—			269			41			13			1,685			255
Income tax expenses		—			5,606			862			1,315			12,456			1,882
Subtract:
Interest income		2,671			934			143			509			1,406			212
Adjusted EBITDA		(86,770	)		(228,274	)		(35,085	)		(62,316	)		(147,828	)		(22,339	)

Adjusted net loss represents net loss excluding share-based compensation expenses. The table below sets forth a reconciliation of our net loss to adjusted net loss for the periods indicated:

	Year Ended December 31,									Six Months Ended June 30,
	2016			2017						2017			2018
	RMB			RMB			US$			RMB			RMB			US$
	(in thousands)
Net loss		(89,169	)		(242,759	)		(37,312	)		(67,269	)		(182,262	)		(27,544	)
Add:
Share-based compensation expenses		4,520			8,517			1,309			3,753			19,663			2,972
Adjusted net loss		(84,649	)		(234,242	)		(36,003	)		(63,516	)		(162,599	)		(24,572	)

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RISK FACTORS

An investment in our ADSs involves significant risks. You should carefully consider all of the information in this prospectus, including the risks and uncertainties described below, before making an investment in our ADSs. Any of the following risks could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. In any such case, the market price of our ADSs could decline, and you may lose all or part of your investment.

Risks Relating to Our Business

We have a limited operating history in a new market at the intersection of the rapidly evolving AI technology and education industries and our historical operating and financial results may not be indicative of future performance, which makes it difficult to predict our future business prospects and financial performance.

We have a limited operating history, which makes it difficult to evaluate our future prospects and ability to make profit. We launched our flagship mobile app, “English Liulishuo,” in 2013, and introduced our AI-powered DongNi English course in 2016. Through our mobile platform, we offer English learning products and services primarily based on AI technologies. Therefore, we operate at the intersection of AI technology and education industries, both of which are rapidly evolving. Our business model, on the basis of integration of AI technologies into language learning, is relatively new and we expect that it will continue to evolve as we grow.

We cannot assure you that we can successfully implement our business model. As the market and our business develop, we may modify our platform, products and services. These changes may not achieve expected results and may have a material and adverse impact on our results of operations and financial condition. Although our revenues have grown rapidly since we began monetization, due to our limited operating history, our past revenues and historical growth rate may not be indicative of our future performance. We cannot assure you that we will be able to achieve similar results or grow at the same rate as we had in the past or at all. Rather than relying on our historical operating and financial results to evaluate us, you should consider our business prospects in light of the risks and difficulties we may encounter as an early-stage company operating in a new market, including, among other things, our ability to expand our user base and convert non-paying users into paying users, provide high-quality products and services, enhance our technology and data capabilities, build our reputation and promote our brand, improve our operational efficiency, attract, retain and motivate talented employees, and anticipate and adapt to changing market conditions. We may not be able to successfully address these risks and difficulties, which could significantly harm our business, results of operations and financial condition.

If we are not able to continue to attract and retain users, convert non-paying users into paying users, and increase spending of paying users on our products and services, our business and prospects may be materially and adversely affected.

We generate revenues primarily from users paying for our courses and services. Therefore, our ability to attract and retain users, convert our non-paying users into paying users, and increase spending of paying users on our courses and services is critical to the continued success and growth of our business. Such ability primarily depends on the overall experience we provide to our users, as well as the actual or perceived effectiveness of our courses.

Although we have been able to develop a large and rapidly growing user base, to continue to do so, we must attract users by continuing to build our brand and reputation as an effective English learning platform, as well as effectively market and precisely target our products and services to prospective users. To retain and engage our user base, we must provide personalized, superior user experience, offer quality courses and content covering a wide range of interests and formats, introduce effective learning products and services, develop engaging platform features, and build and manage a sticky user community.

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However, we cannot assure you that our users will consider their experience satisfactory or our products and services effective. For example, users who cannot make a progress or feel like they are not making progress may attribute such failure to the ineffectiveness of our courses. In addition, some users may encounter trouble in navigating our mobile apps or experience technical difficulties, such as failure of our mobile apps to correctly recognize and properly record speech. Further, our users may not be satisfied with their experience with Weixin-based study groups, which may be caused by our online study advisors or by other users in the group. They may not like the mechanism of having a separate Weixin-based study group, and find the social interactive features of our mobile apps inadequate.

If we fail to address, among other things, any of the foregoing challenges, users may become frustrated by or dissatisfied with our products and services, and may leave our platform without making purchases, and paying users may discontinue using our products and services. As a result, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected.

The success and future growth of our business relies to a large extent on the public recognition and acceptance of our AI-powered education approach, the actual and perceived effectiveness of such education approach and mobile apps as learning tools.

Our products and services are primarily AI-driven, with AI technologies built into the core of our courses, which transforms the traditional approach to education. We operate our courses and services on our mobile platform, whereas it is customary in the education industry to have in-person teaching. The general public, many of whom are our potential users, may not recognize and accept the concept of learning on a mobile app rather than from a human teacher. They may also have concerns over the feasibility and effectiveness of our AI teacher and our products and services, considering that our business model is relatively new and there are few player with proven track records in the market. If our users are unable to experience actual improvements of their English proficiency after spending a reasonable amount of time with our AI teacher, they may consider our education approach ineffective. As a result of the foregoing, the general public may not choose our products and services, and may stick with traditional in-person teaching. If we fail to educate and show existing users and potential users about the value and the effectiveness of our innovative approach as well as further promote our products and services, our growth will be limited and our business, financial performance and prospects may be materially and adversely affected.

We have incurred, and in the future may continue to incur, net losses.

We have incurred significant losses in the past. We incurred net losses of RMB89.2 million in 2016 and RMB242.8 million (US$37.3 million) in 2017, and also net losses of RMB67.3 million in the first half of 2017 and RMB182.3 million (US$27.5 million) in the first half of 2018. We cannot assure you that we will be able to generate net profits in the future. Our ability to achieve profitability will depend primarily on our ability to increase our operating margin, either by growing our revenues at a rate faster than our operating expenses increase, such as our research and development expenses, or by reducing our operating expenses as a percentage of our net revenues, especially our sales and marketing expenses. There can be no assurance that we will achieve this goal, and we may continue to experience losses in the future.

We may fail to continue to develop, innovate and utilize our technologies, especially AI technologies, which are core to our success.

We believe our technologies are core to our success and are critical to the implementation of our business model. Our products and services are empowered by our technologies, especially our AI technologies. We also rely on our data and technology capabilities to build and maintain our platform and infrastructure. We cannot assure you that we can keep up with the fast pace of the technology industry, and continue to develop, innovate and utilize our proprietary capabilities. In particular, the application of AI technology in education is still at an early stage and under exploration. New solutions and technologies developed and introduced by competitors

16

could render our technology obsolete. Developing and integrating new technologies into our existing programs and algorithms could be expensive and time-consuming. We may not succeed in developing and incorporating new technologies at all. If we fail to continue to develop, innovate and utilize our technologies effectively and on a timely basis, our business, financial performance and prospects could be materially and adversely affected.

We may not be able to develop and introduce new products and services or upgrade existing products and services to meet changing user preferences in a timely and cost-effective manner, which may adversely affect our business, financial performance and prospects.

To attract users to our platform and keep our existing users engaged, we must introduce new products and services and upgrade our existing products and services to meet users’ evolving preferences. Users come to our platform aiming to improve their English proficiency, which is a general and broad concept. It is difficult to predict the preferences of a particular user or a specific segment of users. Changes and upgrades to our existing products and services may not be well received by our users, and newly introduced products and services may not achieve success as expected. Going forward, we may also introduce new products and services in areas beyond English learning, with which we have little or no prior experience. Such efforts may require us to make substantial investment in additional human capital and financial resources. We cannot assure you that any of such new products or services will achieve market acceptance or generate sufficient revenues to offset the costs and expenses incurred in relation to our development and promotion efforts. If we fail to improve our existing products and services and introduce new ones in a timely or cost-effective manner, our ability to attract and retain users may be impaired, and our financial performance and prospects may be adversely affected.

We incur significant expenses on and devote significant resources to generating and acquiring user traffic from third-party channels.

We may not be able to promote awareness of our brand and achieve widespread acceptance of our business model to increase direct access to our platform. Therefore, a significant portion of user traffic to our platform is generated from third-party channels, such as app stores of various major mobile brands as well as social network platforms. We have incurred significant expenses on and devoted considerable resources to branding and marketing activities and user traffic acquisition, and we may continue to do so in the future. We incurred branding and marketing expenses of RMB15.8 million in 2016, RMB165.1 million (US$25.4 million) in 2017, RMB30.6 million in the first half of 2017 and RMB130.0 million (US$19.6 million) in the first half of 2018. Our ability to convert user traffic to registered users and retain that user base depends on users’ satisfaction with the quality of our products and services offered on our platform. If we fail to meet these challenges, our business, financial performance and prospects will be materially and adversely affected.

If fewer users are motivated or inspired to improve their English proficiency, the demand for our products and services may decline, which may in turn adversely affect our business and results of operations.

Users choose our products and services to improve their English proficiency for various reasons. Some would like to study abroad in the future, some would like to be able to communicate in English at work, and some simply wish to improve their English pronunciation. However, without a specific target, such as standardized test preparation or improving grades at school, user demands for our products and services may be elastic. Some users may become less motivated or inspired to learn English or become occupied by work or other interests, and discontinue learning English. Some users may switch to products and services more specifically targeted at test preparation or designed to fit school curricula. If demand for our products and services decline, our business and results of operations may be adversely affected.

We may not be able to successfully execute our strategies and effectively manage our growth and the increasing complexity of our business, which could negatively impact our brand, financial performance and prospects.

We continue to experience rapid growth in our business, which will continue to place significant demands on our management, operational and financial resources. We may encounter difficulties as we execute our

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strategies, and expand our operations, data and technology, sales and marketing, and general and administrative functions. We expect our expenses to continue to increase in the future as we acquire more users, launch new technology development projects and build additional technology infrastructure. Continued growth could also strain our ability to maintain the quality and reliability of our platform, develop and improve our operational, financial, legal and management controls, and enhance our reporting systems and procedures. Our expenses may grow faster than our revenues, and our expenses may be greater than we anticipate. We may expand into geographic areas where we do not have experience with local regulations or regulators or where local market conditions are unfavorable for our business model. Managing our growth will require significant expenditures and allocation of valuable management resources. If we fail to achieve the necessary level of efficiency in our organization as it grows, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be harmed.

For example, we may face additional challenges as we implement our strategy to attract a more global user base. We may be subject to laws and regulations of other jurisdictions that are more stringent, which may significantly increase our compliance costs and adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. In addition, we may not able to effectively attract global users and collect sufficient data to train our AI teacher, which may in turn impair the effectiveness of our products and services. Furthermore, we may not be able to generate sufficient revenue from the global market and offset the costs incurred by the expansion, which could negatively impact our financial performance and prospects.

We face competition from players in multiple industries and may fail to compete effectively.

We potentially could face competition not only from providers of online and offline education services, but also from technology and internet players, especially those actively developing AI technology. Our success in competing against other education services, including English learning services and mobile-enabled education services, is primarily dependent on our ability to improve users’ learning efficiency and effectiveness, provide quality learning content and promote our brand. Technology and internet players that are larger than us may devote more resources to research and development, introduce new technology faster than us or have capabilities more advanced than ours. We also compete with them for talent with technological expertise, which is critical to the sustained development of our technology and products and services. We will also face increased competition as we expand our operations, and our competitors in new markets we expand into may have more experience than us in operating in those markets. Existing or potential competitors may have substantially greater brand recognition and possess more financial, marketing and research resources than we do. If we fail to compete effectively, our business, financial performance and prospects will be materially and adversely affected.

Our business and results of operations may be harmed by any failure to maintain and enhance the value of our brand, as well as any negative or malicious publicity about us.

Market recognition of our brand is critical for us to remain competitive. Our ability to maintain and enhance brand recognition and reputation depends primarily on the perceived effectiveness and quality of courses provided by our AI teacher. We may also engage in branding efforts such as marketing campaigns and online advertising. Our branding efforts, however, may not be successful and receive anticipated results, and we may incur significant branding costs along the way. If we are unable to maintain and further enhance our brand recognition and reputation and promote awareness of our products and services, we may not be able to maintain our current level of users, and our results of operations may be materially and adversely affected. Furthermore, any negative or malicious publicity relating to our company, our products and services could harm our brand image and in turn materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations.

We may not be able to successfully diversify our revenue streams.

We generate revenues primarily from our DongNi English course, which is powered by our AI teacher. In supplement to the standard courses, we also provide practice IELTS speaking tests, a dedicated course package for pronunciation improvement, and premium services which involve contract human teachers. In addition to

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individual users, we provide enterprise services to corporate customers. Going forward, we may further expand our offerings to diversify our revenue streams and user base. However, we may not be successful in doing so. For example, not every enterprise has an incentive to acquire training to improve their employees’ English proficiency, and the growth in our corporate clientele may reach a bottleneck. Our test-preparation and premium services may not reach the same level of acceptance as our standard courses. Our new offerings in areas other than English learning may fail to address the demands and preferences of users. If we cannot successfully diversify our revenue streams, our future growth will be hindered.

Our success relies on the continuing efforts of our senior management team and qualified key personnel, and our business may be harmed if we are unable to retain or motivate them.

Our business operations depend on the continued services of our senior management team and qualified key personnel, particularly our three founders and the executive officers named in this prospectus, as well as our AI scientists.

Although we have provided different incentives to our senior management team, we cannot assure you that we can continue to retain their services. One or more of our key executives may be unable or unwilling to continue in their present positions. Meanwhile, we have also provided attractive compensation packages to our qualified key personnel. However, considering the intense market demand and competition for qualified and skilled personnel, especially for AI scientists, we may not be able to hire and retain these personnel at compensation levels consistent with our existing compensation and salary structure. Some of the companies with which we compete for qualified and skilled personnel have greater resources than we have and may be able to offer more attractive terms of employment. In addition, we invest significant time and resources in training our employees, which increases their value to competitors who may seek to recruit them.

If we are unable to retain the services of our senior management team or qualified key personnel, we may not be able to find suitable replacements or may incur significant expenses in finding such replacements, thus our future growth may be constrained, our business may be severely disrupted and our results of operations and financial condition may be materially and adversely affected. In addition, although we have entered into confidentiality and non-competition agreements with our senior management team and qualified key personnel, there is no assurance that any member of our senior management team or any of our qualified key personnel will not join a competitor. In the event that any dispute arises between us, on one hand, and any of our senior management and qualified key personnel, on the other hand, we may have to incur substantial costs and expenses in order to enforce such agreements in China or we may be unable to enforce them at all.

Failure to effectively train and efficiently manage our online study advisors and our premium services teachers may materially and adversely affect the effectiveness of our courses, as well as harm our reputation and results of operations.

Our in-person services are provided primarily through our online study advisors, or OSAs. Our OSAs manage the Weixin-based study groups, which users of DongNi English and Authentic Pronunciation can join. Our OSAs help motivate users and monitor their progress, and respond to users’ queries through these study groups. As they are the ones who interact directly with our users, they are critical to the quality of user experience and our reputation. As of June 30, 2018, we had over 1,000 online study advisors and the average number of users managed by each online study advisor was approximately 500. With the rapid increase of our user base, we face increasing challenges in managing the capacity of our online study advisors and the quality of their services. We generally seek to hire and train qualified and dedicated personnel who have a strong command of the English language and are capable of delivering innovative and inspiring instructions. We train our online study advisors when they are on board and also provide continued training to ensure that they stay abreast of changes in user demands, user preference and other key matters necessary to provide services effectively. However, we may not be able to recruit, train and retain a sufficient number of them while maintaining consistent service quality. A shortage of qualified online study advisors or a decrease in the quality of their service, whether

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actual or perceived, or a significant increase in compensation for us to retain those qualified staff, would have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

In addition, our premium services include tutoring sessions with contract human teachers. We have certain selection criteria for and provide on-board training to those teachers. We have also implemented performance reviews on a regular basis and users rating mechanism to monitor the teaching quality. However, we may not be able to train and effectively manage our premium services teachers, which may result in an unsatisfactory user experience. As a result, the effectiveness of our courses may be impaired and would in turn have a material adverse effect on business, results of operations and financial condition.

If our AI program or algorithms contain material defects, we may incur significant expenses to remediate such defects, which may cause reputational damage and market share loss.

Our courses are powered by our AI programs and algorithms, which address complex challenges in adaptive learning, autoscoring, speech recognition, grammar error detection, pragmatic error detection, synonym analysis and semantic understanding. If any part of our AI program or algorithms contains material defects, not only the corresponding portion of our courses would be impaired, but also the overall function of products and services. We may incur significant expenses to remediate such defects, or may not be able to correct them at all. We have not experienced any material defects to date, but there can be no assurance that our AI programs and algorithms are flawless. If any incidents of material defects took place, our user experience would be significantly harmed, and users may lose confidence and trust in our courses. As a result, we may incur significant reputational damage and market share loss.

We may face risks arising from the fact that we had operated our business without an ICP License, which may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and operational results.

Regulation on value-added telecommunications services, or VATS, in China is strict and has been developing, while the interpretation and enforcement of relevant laws and regulations has been and continues to be uncertain. Pursuant to the PRC Regulations on Telecommunication, in order to engage in VATS, a service provider must obtain a value-added telecommunications business operating license, or VATS License, from the MIIT or its provincial level counterparts. According to the Administrative Measures on Internet Information Services, an internet information service provider is required to obtain a VATS License with the approved business scope of “internet information service,” or an ICP License. The operation of internet information service absent the ICP License would result in confiscation of illegal revenues generated from the provision of such service as determined by the competent government authority, imposition of fines up to several times such illegal gains, and under serious circumstances, suspension of the illegal operation.

Through one of our VIEs, Shanghai Liulishuo, we have provided online English learning courses and services through mobile apps since 2013. Prior to the promulgation of the Classified Catalog of Telecommunications Services (2015 Version), effective from March 2016, or the 2016 MIIT Catalog, the scope of VATS was defined in an earlier version of the catalog. Pursuant to that previous version of the catalog, information service, categorized as a type of VATS, was defined as “the voice information services (telephone information services) or online information and data retrieval and other information services directly provided for end users through the fixed networks, mobile networks or internet and other public communications networks by means of information gathering, development, processing and the construction of the information platform.” It was unclear whether information service provided through our mobile apps fell in the scope of VATS. The 2016 MIIT Catalog revised the definition of information service as “the information services provided for users through public communications networks or internet by means of information gathering, development, processing and the construction of the information platform.” Further, MIIT issued a Q&A to clarify certain issues in implementing the 2016 MIIT Catalog, which requires internet information service providers that provide service through mobile apps to obtain an ICP License. However, different local authorities may have different interpretations and implementation in practice.

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In order to adapt to the regulatory requirements, we applied and obtained an ICP License through Shanghai Liulishuo in May 2018 from the competent government authority, Shanghai Communications Administration, for our two currently operating mobile apps, namely “English Liulishuo” and “IELTS Liulishuo.” However, we cannot assure you that our operations before the ICP License was obtained will not be regarded by the MIIT or its local counterpart as historical non-compliance, in which case we may be subject to penalties. Our business, financial condition, expected growth and prospects would be materially and adversely affected if we were subject to such penalties.

We may face intellectual property infringement claims and other claims of third-party rights, which may be expensive to defend and may disrupt our business and operations.

We cannot assure you that our operations, including courses and services, our technologies and mobile platforms, or any aspects of our business do not or will not infringe upon or violate intellectual property rights (including but not limited to trademarks, patents, copyrights, know-how) or other rights (including but not limited to portraiture right) owned or held by third parties. We may also be subject to legal or administrative proceedings and claims relating to intellectual property rights or other rights of third parties in the future.

There may be certain unauthorized third-party content on our platform and our products, services or other aspects of our business may infringe third-party intellectual property rights, portraiture right or other rights without our awareness. To the extent that our employees or consultants use intellectual property owned by others or unauthorized portraits in their work for us, disputes may arise as to the rights in related know-how and inventions, portraits and other proprietary assets. In addition, our Liuliba community is open to all users. Content posted by our users on our Liuliba platform, may expose us to allegations by third parties of infringement of intellectual property rights, invasion of privacy, defamation and other violations of third-party rights. In particular, our users may share English learning materials or methods with other users by posting a video, audio clip or other forms of content on Liuliba, which may subject us to claims of infringement of third-party intellectual property rights or other rights contained in the copyrighted video, audio clip or other forms of content. Although we have required our users to post only legally compliant and non-offensive materials, a third party may still find user-generated content posted on our platform infringing intellectual property rights or other rights or offensive and take action against us in connection with such content. Holders of such intellectual property rights or other rights may seek to enforce such rights against us in China, the United States or other jurisdictions. If any third-party infringement claims are brought against us, we may be forced to divert management’s time and other resources from our business and operations to defend against these claims, regardless of their merits.

The application and interpretation of China’s intellectual property right laws and the procedures and standards for granting trademarks, patents, copyrights, know-how or other intellectual property rights in China, and the laws governing personal rights are still evolving and remain uncertain, and we cannot assure you that PRC courts or regulatory authorities would agree with our analysis. If we were found to have violated the intellectual property rights of others, we may be subject to liability for our infringement activities or may be prohibited from using such intellectual property or relevant contents, and we may incur licensing or usage fees or be forced to develop alternatives of our own. As a result, our reputation may be harmed and our business and financial performance may be materially and adversely affected.

We may not be able to prevent others from making unauthorized use of our intellectual property, and may incur increasing costs to protect us against such infringements. If we fail to protect our intellectual property rights, our brand and business may suffer.

We regard our patents, software registrations, trademarks, domain names, know-how, proprietary technologies and similar intellectual property as critical to our success, and we depend, to a large extent, on our ability to develop and maintain the intellectual property rights relating to our technology and course materials. We have devoted considerable time and resources to the development and improvement of, among others, our websites, mobile apps and our course materials.

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We primarily rely on a combination of intellectual property laws and contractual arrangements, including confidentiality and non-compete agreements with our management, employees and others, as well as the contractual arrangements with third-party consultants in connection with product or learning content development, to protect our proprietary rights. See “Business—Intellectual Property.” However, we cannot assure you that such existing measures are sufficient and effective. Despite these measures, any of our intellectual property rights could be challenged, invalidated, circumvented or misappropriated, or such intellectual property may not be sufficient to provide us with competitive advantages. In addition, because of the rapid pace of technological change in our industry, parts of our business rely on technologies developed or licensed by third parties, and we may not be able to obtain or continue to obtain licenses and technologies from these third parties on reasonable terms, or at all.

It is often difficult to maintain and enforce intellectual property rights in China. Statutory laws and regulations are subject to judicial interpretation and enforcement and may not be applied consistently due to the lack of clear guidance on statutory interpretation. Confidentiality, invention assignment and non-compete agreements may be breached by counterparties, and there may not be adequate remedies available to us for any such breach. Accordingly, we may not be able to effectively protect our intellectual property rights or to enforce our contractual rights in China. Monitoring and preventing any unauthorized use of our intellectual property is difficult and costly and the steps we take may be inadequate to prevent the misappropriation of our intellectual property. In the event that we resort to litigation to enforce our intellectual property rights, such litigation could result in substantial costs and a diversion of our managerial and financial resources. We can provide no assurance that we will prevail in such litigation. In addition, our trade secrets may be leaked or otherwise become available to, or be independently discovered by, our competitors. Any failure in protecting or enforcing our intellectual property rights could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Privacy concerns relating to our platform and the handling of user information could damage our reputation, and deter current and potential users and other customers from using our products and services.

Our platform stores and processes certain personal and other sensitive data provided by our users. Personally identifiable and other confidential information is subject to increased regulations in domestic and international jurisdictions. PRC government authorities have enacted a series of laws and regulations relating to the protection of privacy and personal information, under which internet service providers and other network operators are required to clearly indicate the purposes, methods and scope of any personal information collection and usage, to obtain appropriate user consent and to establish user information protection systems with appropriate remedial measures. However, this regulatory framework for privacy issues in China and worldwide is currently evolving and is likely to remain uncertain for the foreseeable future. We have already implemented certain technical measures to address the privacy concerns. However, we cannot assure you that our existing measures will be considered sufficient under applicable laws and regulations. We could be adversely affected if legislation or regulations in China are expanded to require changes in business practices or privacy policies, or if the PRC governmental authorities interpret or implement their legislation or regulations in ways that negatively affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. In addition to laws, regulations and other applicable rules regarding privacy and privacy advocacy, industry groups or other private parties may propose new and different privacy standards. Because the interpretation and application of privacy and data protection laws and privacy standards are still uncertain, it is possible that these laws or privacy standards may be interpreted and applied in a manner that is inconsistent with our practices. Any inability to adequately address privacy concerns, even if unfounded, or to comply with applicable privacy or data protection laws, regulations and privacy standards, could result in additional cost and liability for us, damage our reputation, inhibit the use of our platform and harm our business.

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Any breaches to our security measures, including unauthorized access, computer viruses and cyber-attack, may adversely affect our database, reduce the use of our platform, impact our users’ experience and privacy as well as damage our reputation and brand names.

The massive volume of data that we process and store makes us or third-party service providers who host our servers an attractive target and potentially vulnerable to cyber-attacks, computer viruses, physical or electronic break-ins or similar disruptions. While we have taken steps to protect our database, our security measures could be breached. Because techniques used to sabotage or obtain unauthorized access to systems change frequently and generally are not recognized until they are launched against a target, we may be unable to anticipate these techniques or to implement adequate preventative measures. Any accidental or willful security breaches or other unauthorized access to our platform could cause confidential information to be stolen and used for criminal purposes. Security breaches or unauthorized access to confidential information could also expose us to liability related to the loss of the information, time-consuming and expensive litigation and negative publicity. If security measures are breached because of third-party action, employee error, malfeasance or otherwise, or if design flaws in our technology infrastructure are exposed and exploited, our relationships with users and other customers could be severely damaged, we could incur significant liability and our business and operations could be adversely affected.

The PRC Cyber Security Law, effective on June 1, 2017, stipulates that a network operator, including internet information service provider among others, must adopt technical measures and other necessary measures in accordance with applicable laws and regulations as well as compulsory national and industrial standards to safeguard the safety and stability of network operations, effectively respond to network security incidents, prevent illegal and criminal activities, and maintain the integrity, confidentiality and availability of network data. We are making efforts to comply with the applicable laws, regulations and standards, there can be no assurance that our measures will be effective and sufficient under the PRC Cyber Security Law. If we were found by the regulatory authorities to have failed to comply with the PRC Cyber Security Law, we would be subject to warnings, fines, confiscation of illegal revenue, revocation of licenses, cancellation of filings, shutdown of our platform or even criminal liability and our business, results of operations and financial condition would also be adversely affected. In addition, in light of the evolving regulatory framework of China for the protection of information in cyberspace, we may be subject to uncertainties of and adjustments to our business practices, which may incur additional operating expenses and adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

Any significant disruption in service on our platform or in our computer systems, including events beyond our control, could reduce the attractiveness of our platform and services and result in a loss of users.

In the event of a platform outage and physical data loss, the performance of our platform and services would be materially and adversely affected. The satisfactory performance, reliability and availability of our platform, services and underlying technology infrastructure are critical to our operations and reputation and our ability to retain existing and attract new users. Our servers and backup system are hosted and maintained at cloud servers by a third-party service provider. Our operations depend on the ability of such third-party service provider to protect our systems against damage or interruption from natural disasters, power or telecommunications failures, air quality issues, environmental conditions, computer viruses or attempts to harm our systems, criminal acts and similar events. If there is a lapse in service or damage to the facilities of such third-party service provider, we could experience interruptions and delays in our service and may incur additional expense in arranging new facilities.

Any interruptions or delays in the availability of our platform or services, whether as a result of third party or our error, natural disasters or security breaches, whether accidental or willful, could harm our reputation and our relationships with users and other customers. Additionally, we do not maintain business interruption insurance or general third-party insurance. Our disaster recovery plan has not been tested under actual disaster conditions, and we may not have sufficient capacity to recover all data and services in the event of an outage.

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These factors could damage our brand and reputation, divert our employees’ attention and subject us to liability, any of which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We may be held liable for information or content displayed on, retrieved from or linked to our platform or posted by us on other platform, which may materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations.

The PRC government has adopted regulations governing internet access and distribution of information over the internet. Under these regulations, internet content providers and internet publishers are prohibited from posting or displaying over the internet content that, among other things, violates PRC laws and regulations, impairs the national dignity of China, contains terrorism, extremism, content of force or brutality, or is reactionary, obscene, superstitious, fraudulent or defamatory. Failure to comply with these requirements may result in the revocation of licenses to provide internet content and other licenses, the closure of the concerned websites and criminal liabilities. In the past, failure to comply with these requirements has resulted in the closure of certain websites. The website operator may also be held liable for the censored information displayed on or linked to the website.

According to the Administrative Provisions on Mobile Internet Applications Information Services promulgated by the Cyberspace Administration of China, or CAC, effective in August 2016, providers of mobile apps may not create, copy, publish or distribute information and content that is prohibited by laws and regulations. We are required to adopt and implement management systems of information security and establish and improve procedures on content examination and administration. We must adopt such measures as warning, restricted release, suspension of updates and closure of accounts, keep relevant records, and report unlawful content to competent government authorities. We have implemented internal control procedures screening the information and content on our mobile apps to ensure their compliance with these provisions. However, there can be no assurance that all the information or content displayed on, retrieved from or linked to our mobile apps complies with the requirements of the provisions at all times. If our mobile apps were found to violate the provisions, we may be subject to administrative penalties, including warnings, service suspension or removal of our mobile apps from the relevant mobile app store, which may materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations.

Under current PRC laws and regulations, an information service provider that reposts news for internet publication shall first obtain a license from CAC or its local counterpart, and shall repost news issued by domestic news entities within such scope as prescribed by the government. The reposting of news published by foreign media is generally prohibited without prior approval. Certain learning materials we provide on our platform are from foreign media. Due to the ambiguity of the definition of “news” under the current PRC laws and regulations, we cannot assure you that our provision of such materials will not be deemed as illegally reposting foreign news by the relevant PRC government authorities, which will subject us to various penalties, including fines and suspension of such provision.

We may also become involved in governmental investigation or exposed to administrative penalty relating to content posted by us on our and other platforms. For example, we recently received a fine of RMB100,000 due to the use of certain exaggerating and inaccurate phrases regarding our platform which violated PRC Advertisement Law. We have paid such penalty as required by the administrative order from the competent authority.

In addition, we may also be subject to intellectual property infringement claims or other allegations as the content posted by us or our users on our online platform may infringe intellectual property or other rights held by any third party. See “—Risks Relating to our Business—We may face intellectual property infringement claims and other related claims of third-party rights, which may be expensive to defend and may disrupt our business and operations.”

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Our platform and internal systems rely on software that is highly technical, and if it contains undetected errors, our business could be adversely affected.

Our platform and internal systems rely on software that is highly technical and complex. In addition, our platform and internal systems depend on the ability of the software to store, retrieve, process and manage immense amounts of data. The software on which we rely has contained, and may now or in the future contain, undetected errors or bugs. Some errors may only be discovered after the code has been released for external or internal use. Errors or other design defects within the software on which we rely may result in a negative experience for users and other customers, delay introductions of new features or enhancements, result in errors or compromise our ability to protect data or our intellectual property. Any errors, bugs or defects discovered in the software on which we rely could result in harm to our reputation, loss of users or other customers or liability for damages, any of which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We may not be successful in developing or maintaining relationships with key participants in the mobile industry or in developing products and services that operate effectively with these operating systems, networks, devices and standards.

We make our products and services available on both iOS and Android systems across a variety of mobile devices. We depend on the interoperability of our products and services with popular devices and mobile operating systems that we do not control. Any changes in devices or their systems that degrade the functionality of our products and services or give preferential treatment to competitive products or services could adversely affect usage of our products and services. We may not be successful in developing relationships with key participants in the mobile industry or in developing services that operate effectively with their operating systems, networks, devices and standards. We also cooperate with key participants in the mobile industry to put our products on the front page of their respective apps stores and label our products as recommended, which helps us attract prospective users. If we cannot maintain such relationships at reasonable costs or at all, we may not get sufficient exposure on their respective platforms, which will impair our ability to acquire traffic. Moreover, we are subject to the terms, policies and conditions of the app stores. If any of the key participants finds us to be in violation of the terms, policies and conditions of its app store, it may seek economic damages from us or remove our products from its app store. Such incident would also harm our relationship with the key participant. Further, if the number of systems, networks and devices for which we develop our products and services increases, it will result in an increase in our costs and expenses, and adversely affect our net margin and results of operations.

We utilize payment collection channels to collect proceeds from our paying users’ purchases. Any failure by those payment collection channels to process payments effectively and securely may materially and adversely affect our revenue realization and brand recognition.

We depend on the billing and payment systems of third parties such as online third-party payment processors to maintain accurate records of payments of sales proceeds by paying users and collect such payments. We receive periodic statements from these third parties which indicate the aggregate amount of fees that were charged to paying users of our courses and services. Our business and results of operations could be adversely affected if these third parties fail to accurately account for or calculate the revenues generated from the sales of our courses and services. If there are security breaches or failure or errors in the payment process of these third parties, our user experience may be affected and our business results may be negatively impacted.

Failure to timely collect our receivables from third parties whose billing and payment systems we use and third-party payment processors may adversely affect our cash flows. Our third-party payment processors may from time to time experience cash flow difficulties. Consequently, they may delay their payments to us or fail to pay us at all. Any delay in payment or inability of current or potential third-party payment processors to pay us may significantly harm our cash flow and results of operations.

We also do not have control over the security measures of our third-party payment service providers, and security breaches of the online payment systems that we use could expose us to litigation and possible liability

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for failing to secure confidential customer information and could, among other things, damage our reputation and the perceived security of all of the online payment systems that we use. If a well-publicized internet security breach were to occur, users concerned about the security of their online payments may become reluctant to purchase our products through payment service providers even if the publicized breach did not involve payment systems or methods used by us. In addition, billing software errors could damage user confidence in these payment systems. If any of the above were to occur and damage our reputation or the perceived security of the payment systems we use, we may lose paying users as they may be discouraged from purchasing products or services on our platform, which may have an adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

Our operations depend on the performance of the public communications infrastructure in China.

Almost all access to mobile and internet in China is maintained through state-owned telecommunication operators under the administrative control and regulatory supervision of the MIIT. We primarily rely on a limited number of telecommunication service providers to provide us with data communications capacity through local telecommunications lines and internet data centers to host our servers. We have limited access to alternative networks or services in the event of disruptions, failures or other problems with China’s public communications networks, such as mobile, internet or the fixed telecommunications networks. With the expansion of our business, we may be required to upgrade our technology and infrastructure to keep up with the increasing traffic on our platform. We cannot assure you that the public communications infrastructure in China will be able to support the demands associated with the continued growth in usage. In addition, we have no control over the costs of the services provided by public communications service providers. If the prices we pay for their services rise significantly, our financial performance may be adversely affected. Furthermore, if mobile access fees or other charges to mobile users increase, our user traffic may decline and our business may be harmed.

We rely on Weixin, a third-party social network program, to conduct parts of our courses and deliver a significant portion of our services.

We rely on Weixin, a third-party social network program, to support our AI-powered courses and deliver a significant portion of our communications with users. In particular, our paying users are invited to join Weixin-based study groups conducted by our online study advisors, who then provide more personalized assistance as well as engage in cross-selling efforts on Weixin. If we are not able to conduct the foregoing activities on WeChat or have to incur significant expenses in doing so, we may have to move the functions to our own platform or other third-party platform. However, as Weixin is one of the largest social platforms in China, other platforms that do not have the same level of user base and user engagement may not be as effective as WeChat in performing the foregoing functions. Therefore, any interruption to or discontinuation of our cooperative relationship with the operator of Weixin may severely and negatively impact our ability to deliver our services to users.

If we fail to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting, we may be unable to accurately report our financial results or prevent fraud.

Prior to this offering, we have been a private company with limited accounting personnel and other resources with which to address our internal control and procedures and we were never required to evaluate our internal control within a specified period, and, as a result, we may experience difficulty in meeting these reporting requirements in a timely manner. Our management has not completed assessment of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, and our independent registered public accounting firm has not conducted an audit of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. However, in the course of preparing and auditing our consolidated financial statements for the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2017, we and our independent registered public accounting firm respectively identified one material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2017. In accordance with reporting requirements set forth by the SEC, a “material weakness” is a deficiency, or a combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting, such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of our company’s annual or interim consolidated financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis.

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The material weakness identified relates to lack of sufficient competent financial reporting and accounting personnel with appropriate understanding of U.S. GAAP to design and implement formal period-end financial reporting policies and procedures; to address complex U.S. GAAP technical accounting issues; and to prepare and review our combined financial statements and related disclosures in accordance with U.S. GAAP and financial reporting requirements set forth by the SEC. Neither we nor our independent registered public accounting firm undertook a comprehensive assessment of our internal control under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act for purposes of identifying and reporting any material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting. We and they are required to do so only after we become a public company. Had we performed a formal assessment of our internal control over financial reporting or had our independent registered public accounting firm performed an audit of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, additional material weaknesses may have been identified.

Upon the completion of this offering, we will become a public company in the United States subject to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 will require that we include a report of management on our internal control over financial reporting in our annual report on Form 20-F beginning with our annual report for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2019. In addition, once we cease to be an “emerging growth company” as such term is defined in the JOBS Act, our independent registered public accounting firm must attest to and report on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. Our management may conclude that our internal control over financial reporting is not effective. Moreover, even if our management concludes that our internal control over financial reporting is effective, our independent registered public accounting firm, after conducting its own independent testing, may issue a report that is qualified if it is not satisfied with our internal controls or the level at which our controls are documented, designed, operated or reviewed, or if it interprets the relevant requirements differently from us. In addition, after we become a public company, our reporting obligations may place a significant strain on our management, operational and financial resources and systems for the foreseeable future. We may be unable to timely complete our evaluation testing and any required remediation.

During the course of documenting and testing our internal control procedures, in order to satisfy the requirements of Section 404, we may identify other weaknesses and deficiencies in our internal control over financial reporting. In addition, if we fail to maintain the adequacy of our internal control over financial reporting, as these standards are modified, supplemented or amended from time to time, we may not be able to conclude on an ongoing basis that we have effective internal control over financial reporting in accordance with Section 404. If we fail to achieve and maintain an effective internal control environment, we could suffer material misstatements in our financial statements and fail to meet our reporting obligations, which would likely cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information. This could in turn limit our access to capital markets, harm our results of operations, and lead to a decline in the trading price of our ADSs.

Additionally, ineffective internal control over financial reporting could expose us to increased risk of fraud or misuse of corporate assets and subject us to potential delisting from the stock exchange on which we list, regulatory investigations and civil or criminal sanctions. We may also be required to restate our financial statements from prior periods.

Future investments in and acquisitions of complementary assets, technologies and businesses may fail, and may result in equity and earnings dilution and significant diversion of management attention.

We may invest in or acquire assets, technologies and businesses that are complementary to our existing business. This may include opportunities to expand our service offerings and strengthen our technology and data capabilities. Our investments or acquisitions may not yield the results we expect. In addition, investments and acquisitions could result in the use of substantial amounts of cash, potentially dilutive issuances of equity securities, significant amortization expenses related to intangible assets, significant diversion of management attention and exposure to potential unknown liabilities of the acquired business. Moreover, the cost of identifying and consummating investments and acquisitions, and integrating the acquired businesses into ours, may be

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significant, and the integration of acquired businesses may be disruptive to our existing business operations. In the event that our investments and acquisitions are not successful, our results of operations and financial condition may be materially and adversely affected.

We may not be able to obtain additional capital when desired, on favorable terms or at all.

We may make investments from time to time in facilities, hardware, software, technological systems and other projects to remain competitive. Due to the unpredictable nature of the capital markets and our industry, there can be no assurance that we will be able to raise additional capital on terms favorable to us, or at all, if and when required, especially if we experience disappointing results of operations. If adequate capital is not available to us as required, our ability to fund our operations, take advantage of unanticipated opportunities, develop or enhance our infrastructure or respond to competitive pressures could be significantly limited. If we do raise additional funds through the issuance of equity or convertible debt securities, the ownership interests of our shareholders could be significantly diluted. These newly issued securities may have rights, preferences or privileges senior to those of existing shareholders.

Failure to comply with PRC labor laws and make adequate contributions to various employee benefits plans as required by PRC regulations may subject us to penalties.

Companies operating in China are required to register with governmental authorities and participate in various government-sponsored employee benefit plans, including certain social insurance, housing funds and other welfare-oriented payment obligations, and contribute to the plans in amounts equal to certain percentages of salaries, including bonuses and allowances, of employees up to a maximum amount specified by the local government from time to time at locations where our employees are based. In addition, companies registered in China are required to apply for work permits for their foreign employees. The requirement of employee benefit plans has not been implemented consistently by the local governments in China given the different levels of economic development in different locations. We have not made adequate employee benefit payments in strict compliance with the relevant PRC regulations for and on behalf of our employees and have also been reliant on third-party service provider to pay social benefits mainly for our employees based outside of Shanghai. Besides, we are still in the process of applying for work permit for some of our foreign employees. We are in the process of rectifying these practices and will continuously make efforts to comply with the relevant PRC regulations. Our failure in making contributions to various employee benefit plans in strict compliance with applicable PRC labor-related laws may subject us to late payment penalties, and we could be required to make up the contributions for these plans as well as to pay late fees and fines. Further, our failure to timely obtain work permit for our foreign employees may subject us to penalties and we may be unable to hire such foreign employees. If any of the foregoing were to occur, our financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected.

We have granted and may continue to grant restricted shares, share options and other share-based awards in the future, which may result in increased share-based compensation expenses.

We adopted a 2014 Equity Incentive Plan, or the 2014 Plan, and a 2018 Share Incentive Plan, or the 2018 Plan, for the purpose of granting share-based compensation awards to employees, directors and consultants to incentivize their performance and align their interests with ours. For further detailed information, please refer to “Management—Share Incentive Plans.” For the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2017, we recorded approximately RMB4.5 million and RMB8.5 million (US$1.4 million), respectively, in share-based compensation expenses. For the six months ended June 30, 2017 and 2018, we recorded approximately RMB3.8 million and RMB20.0 million (US$3.0 million), respectively, in share-based compensation expenses. We believe the granting of share-based compensation is of significant importance to our ability to attract and retain key personnel and employees, and we will continue to grant share-based compensation to employees in the future. As a result, our expenses associated with share-based compensation may increase, which may have an adverse effect on our results of operations.

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If we are not able to control our labor costs in an effective way, our business, results of operations and financial condition may be adversely affected.

Our labor costs are primarily incurred in China and the United States. The economy of China has been experiencing significant growth, leading to inflation and increased labor costs, particularly in the large cities, such as Shanghai. In addition, we are required by PRC laws and regulations to pay various statutory employee benefits, including pensions, housing fund, medical insurance, work-related injury insurance, unemployment insurance and maternity insurance to designated government agencies for the benefit of our employees. In the United States, various federal and state labor laws govern the relationship with our employees and affect our labor costs, which covers workers’ compensation rates, mandatory health benefits and other wage and benefit requirements.

We expect that our labor costs both in China and the United States, including wages and employee benefits, will continue to grow as our business grows in scale. Significant additional government-imposed increases in the jurisdictions where we have operations may affect our profitability and results of operations, unless we are able to pass on these costs to our users by increasing prices of our programs.

A severe or prolonged downturn in the Chinese or global economy could materially and adversely affect our business and financial condition.

The global macroeconomic environment is facing challenges, including the end of quantitative easing by the U.S. Federal Reserve, the economic slowdown in the Eurozone since 2014 and uncertainties over the impact of Brexit. The growth of the PRC economy has slowed down since 2012 compared to the previous decade and the trend may continue. There is considerable uncertainty over the long-term effects of the expansionary monetary and fiscal policies adopted by the central banks and financial authorities of some of the world’s leading economies, including the United States and China. There have been concerns over unrest and terrorist threats in the Middle East, Europe and Africa. There have also been concerns about the relationship between China and other countries, including surrounding Asian countries, which may potentially lead to foreign investors closing down their business or withdrawing their investment in China. Economic conditions in China are sensitive to global economic conditions, as well as changes in domestic economic and political policies and the expected or perceived overall economic growth rate in China. Any prolonged slowdown in the global or Chinese economy may have a negative impact on our business, results of operations and financial condition. Our users and other customers may reduce or delay spending with us, while we may have difficulty expanding our customer base fast enough, or at all, to offset the impact of decreased spending by our existing customers.

We have limited insurance coverage of our operations, which may expose us to significant costs and business disruption.

The insurance industry in China is still in an early stage of development, and insurance companies in China currently offer limited business-related insurance products. We do not maintain business interruption insurance or general third-party liability insurance, nor do we maintain property insurance, product liability insurance or key-man insurance. We consider this practice to be reasonable in light of the nature of our business and the insurance products that are available in China and in line with the practices of other companies in the same industry of similar size in China. Any uninsured risks may result in substantial costs and the diversion of resources, which could adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

We face risks related to natural disasters, health epidemics and other outbreaks, which could significantly disrupt our operations.

Our business could be adversely affected by the effects of epidemics. In recent years, there have been breakouts of epidemics in China and globally. Our operations could be disrupted if one of our employees is suspected of having H1N1 flu, avian flu or another epidemic, since it could require our employees to be quarantined and/or our offices to be disinfected. In addition, our results of operations could be adversely affected to the extent that the outbreak harms the PRC economy in general.

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We are also vulnerable to natural disasters and other calamities. Our servers and back system are hosted and maintained at cloud servers by a third-party service provider. We cannot assure you that such third-party service provider will have adequate measures to protect itself from the effects of fire, floods, typhoons, earthquakes, power loss, telecommunications failures, break-ins, war, riots, terrorist attacks or similar events. Any of the foregoing events may give rise to server interruptions, breakdowns, system failures, technology platform failures or internet failures, which could cause the loss or corruption of data or malfunctions of software or hardware as well as adversely affect our ability to provide services on our platform.

We are subject to risks relating to our leased properties

Currently, all of our offices are on leased premises. We may not be able to successfully maintain, extend or renew our leases upon expiration of the current terms on commercially reasonable terms or at all, and may therefore be forced to relocate to new offices. Besides, pursuant to relevant PRC laws and regulations, land that acquired through governmental allocation is prohibited from leasing without prior approval from competent governmental authorities. Otherwise, the relevant government authority may revoke such leases and take back these leased properties without compensation. Currently, certain of our leased properties are on land acquired through governmental allocation. If such lease agreements are revoked by the relevant government authority, we may therefore be forced to relocate to new offices.

Further, we have entered into certain lease agreements with parties who have not provided evidence of proper legal title to the leased premises or authorization from the legal owners for sublease of the premises. If such parties are not the legal owners, nor have they obtained the proper authorization from the legal owners of the premises, and the actual owners successfully challenge the validity of the relevant leases, we would be forced to relocate.

In the event we are forced to relocate, we may not be able to locate desirable alternative sites for our offices in a timely and cost-effective manner and the relocation of any of our offices may disrupt our operations and result in significant relocation expenses, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, although we may seek damages from the counterparties to the lease agreements, there can be no assurance that we would be able to collect such damages or the damages we collected could cover our relocation expenses.

We have not registered our lease agreements with the relevant government authorities. Under the relevant PRC laws and regulations, we may be required to register and file with the relevant government authority executed leases. The failure to register the lease agreements for our leased properties will not affect the validity of these lease agreements, but the competent housing authorities may order us to register the lease agreements in a prescribed period of time and impose a fine ranging from RMB1,000 to RMB10,000 for each non-registered lease if we fail to complete the registration within the prescribed timeframe.

Risks Relating to Our Corporate Structure

If the PRC government deems that our contractual arrangements with our VIEs do not comply with PRC regulatory restrictions on foreign investment in the relevant industries, or if these regulations or the interpretation of existing regulations change in the future, we could be subject to severe penalties or be forced to relinquish our interests in those operations.

Foreign ownership of internet-based businesses, such as internet information services, is subject to restrictions under current PRC laws and regulations. For example, foreign investors are not allowed to own more than 50% of the equity interests in a value-added telecommunication service provider (except e-commerce which does not apply to us) and major foreign investor must typically have experience in providing value-added telecommunications services overseas and maintain a good track record in accordance with the Guidance Catalog of Industries for Foreign Investment promulgated in 2007, as most recently amended in June 2017, and other applicable laws and regulations.

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We are a Cayman Islands exempted company and our PRC subsidiaries are considered foreign-invested enterprises. To comply with PRC laws and regulations, we conduct operations in China through our VIEs. Dr. Yi Wang, Mr. Zheren Hu, Dr. Hui Lin, Zhuhai Xinran Consulting and Management Co., Ltd., Ningbo Meishan Bonded Port Zhimei Fifth Equity Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership), Jiwei Enterprise Management and Consulting (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Mr. Gu Jiong, and two other shareholders hold 37.32%, 10.51%, 6.11%, 11.88%, 11.88%, 10.38%, 5.56% and 6.36% equity interests in Shanghai Liulishuo, respectively. Each of Shanghai Mengfan and Jiangsu Liulishuo have the same shareholding structure as Shanghai Liulishuo. We have entered into a series of contractual arrangements with each of our VIEs and their respective shareholders, which enable us to (i) exercise effective control over our VIEs, (ii) receive substantially all of the economic benefits of our VIEs, and (iii) have an exclusive call option to purchase all or part of the equity interests in our VIEs when and to the extent permitted by PRC laws. Because of these contractual arrangements, we are deemed the primary beneficiary of our VIEs, and hence consolidate their financial results as our variable interest entities under U.S. GAAP. For a detailed description of these contractual arrangements, see “Corporate History and Structure.”

In the opinion of Fangda Partners, our PRC legal counsel, (i) the ownership structure of our WFOE and our VIEs, both currently and immediately after giving effect to this offering, does not and will not violate applicable PRC laws and regulations currently in effect; and (ii) the contractual arrangements between our WFOE, our VIEs and their respective shareholders governed by PRC law, both currently and immediately after giving effect to this offering, are and will be valid, binding, and do not and will not violate applicable PRC laws or regulations currently in effect, except that the pledges on the equity interests in our VIEs would not be deemed validly created until they are registered with the competent administration of industry and commerce. However, we have been advised by our PRC legal counsel that there are substantial uncertainties regarding the interpretation and application of current and future PRC laws, regulations and rules, and there can be no assurance that the PRC regulatory authorities will take a view that is consistent with the opinion of our PRC legal counsel.

It is uncertain whether any new PRC laws or regulations relating to variable interest entity structures will be adopted or if adopted, what they would provide. In particular, the Ministry of Commerce, or MOFCOM, published a discussion draft of a proposed Foreign Investment Law for public review and comments in January 2015 which, if enacted into law, would represent a major change to the laws and regulations relating to variable interest entity structures. See “—Risks Relating to Doing Business in China—Our business may be significantly affected by the draft Foreign Investment Law, if implemented as proposed.” Additionally, in August 2018, the Ministry of Justice of the People’s Republic of China published the Amendment to the Implementation Rules for Private Education Law (Draft for Approval), or the Draft Amendment for Private Education Law, for public review and comments. While there remains substantial uncertainty with respect to the final content, effective date, interpretation and implementation of the Draft Amendment for Private Education Law, if enacted into law, related party transactions to which a private school (including a private training education institution) is a party would be required to be concluded on a fair and just basis without impediment to the interests of the state, the school, the teachers and the students, which could potentially impact our contractual arrangements with our VIEs. Please see “—Risks Relating to Doing Business in China—We face risks associated with uncertainties surrounding the PRC laws and regulations governing the education industry in general, and the online for-profit private training in particular.”

If the ownership structure, contractual arrangements and businesses of our PRC subsidiaries or our VIEs are found to be in violation of any existing or future PRC laws or regulations, or our PRC subsidiaries or our VIEs fail to obtain or maintain any of the required permits or approvals, the relevant PRC regulatory authorities would have broad discretion to take action in dealing with such violations or failures, including:

• revoking the business licenses and/or operating licenses of such entities;

• shutting down our servers or blocking our mobile apps, or discontinuing or placing restrictions or onerous conditions on our operation through any transactions between our PRC subsidiaries and VIEs;

• imposing fines, confiscating the income from our PRC subsidiaries or our VIEs, or imposing other requirements with which we or our VIEs may not be able to comply;

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• requiring us to restructure our ownership structure or operations, including terminating the contractual arrangements with our VIEs and deregistering the equity pledge of our VIEs, which in turn would affect our ability to consolidate, derive economic interests from, or exert effective control over our VIEs; or

• restricting or prohibiting our use of the proceeds of this offering to finance our business and operations in China, and taking other regulatory or enforcement actions that could be harmful to our business.

Any of these actions could cause significant disruption to our business operations and severely damage our reputation, which would in turn materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. If any of these occurrences results in our inability to direct the activities of our VIEs that most significantly impact its economic performance, and/or our failure to receive the economic benefits from our VIEs, we may not be able to consolidate the entity in our consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

We rely on contractual arrangements with our VIEs and their respective shareholders to exercise control over a significant part of our business, which may not be as effective as direct ownership in providing operational control.

We have relied and expect to continue to rely on variable interest entity contractual arrangements to conduct a significant part of our operations in China. We rely on contractual arrangements with Shanghai Liulishuo, Shanghai Mengfan, Jiangsu Liulishuo, and their respective shareholders to conduct a significant part of our operations in China. For a description of these contractual arrangements, see “Corporate History and Structure.” The shareholders of our VIEs may not act in the best interests of our company or may not perform their obligations under these contracts. If we had direct ownership of our VIEs, we would be able to exercise our rights as a shareholder to effect changes in the board of directors of our VIEs, which in turn could implement changes, subject to any applicable fiduciary obligations, at the management and operational level. However, under the contractual arrangements, we would rely on legal remedies under PRC law for breach of contract in the event that our VIEs and their respective shareholders did not perform their obligations under the contracts. These legal remedies may not be as effective as direct ownership in providing us with control over our VIEs.

If our VIEs or their respective shareholders fail to perform their obligations under the contractual arrangements, we may have to incur substantial costs and expend additional resources to enforce such arrangements. All the agreements under our contractual arrangements are governed by PRC law and provide for the resolution of disputes through arbitration in China. Accordingly, these contracts would be interpreted in accordance with PRC law and any disputes would be resolved in accordance with PRC legal procedures. The legal system in China is not as developed as in some other jurisdictions, such as the United States. As a result, uncertainties in the PRC legal system could limit our ability to enforce these contractual arrangements. Meanwhile, there are very few precedents and little formal guidance as to how contractual arrangements in the context of a variable interest entity should be interpreted or enforced under PRC law. Significant uncertainties remain regarding the ultimate outcome of such arbitration should legal action become necessary. In addition, under PRC law, rulings by arbitrators are final, parties cannot appeal the arbitration results in courts, and if the losing parties fail to carry out the arbitration awards within a prescribed time limit, the prevailing parties may only enforce the arbitration awards in PRC courts through arbitration award recognition proceedings, which would require additional expenses and delay. Moreover, the shareholders of the VIEs shall pledge all equity interests they hold in the VIEs to our WFOE pursuant to the equity pledge agreements. As of the date of this prospectus, we have registered the equity pledges for Shanghai Liulishuo and Shanghai Mengfan with the local branch of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce (currently known as the State Administration for Market Regulation), or the SAIC, in accordance with PRC laws to perfect their respective equity pledges, and are still in the process of completing such registration for Jiangsu Liulishuo. If any of the shareholders of our VIEs incur any liabilities, such equity interests they hold in our VIEs may be subject to recourse by their third-party creditors, before equity pledge registration is completed. In such case, our rights under these contractual

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arrangements will be adversely affected. In the event we are unable to enforce these contractual arrangements, or if we suffer significant delay or other obstacles in the process of enforcing these contractual arrangements, we may not be able to exert effective control over our VIEs, and our ability to conduct our business may be negatively affected.

The shareholders of our VIEs may have potential conflicts of interest with us, which may materially and adversely affect our business and financial condition.

A significant portion of equity interests in our VIEs are held by our shareholders, directors and executive officers or affiliates thereof. They may have potential conflicts of interest with us. These equity interests holders may breach, or cause our VIEs to breach, or refuse to renew, the existing contractual arrangements we have with them and our VIEs, which would have a material and adverse effect on our ability to effectively control our VIEs and receive economic benefits from them. For example, the equity interests holders may be able to cause our agreements with our VIEs to be performed in a manner adverse to us by, among other things, failing to remit payments due under the contractual arrangements to us on a timely basis. We cannot assure you that when conflicts of interest arise, any or all of these shareholders will act in the best interests of our company or such conflicts will be resolved in our favor.

Currently, we do not have any arrangements to address potential conflicts of interest between these equity interests holders and our company. For the equity interests holders who are also our directors and executive officers, we rely on them to abide by the laws of the Cayman Islands and China, which provide that directors owe a fiduciary duty to the company that requires them to act in what they consider in good faith to be in the best interests of our company and not to use their position for personal gains. There is currently no specific and clear guidance under PRC laws that address any conflict between PRC laws and laws of Cayman Islands in respect of any conflict relating to corporate governance. If we cannot resolve any conflict of interest or dispute between us and the equity interests holders of our VIEs, we would have to rely on legal proceedings, which could result in disruption of our business and subject us to substantial uncertainty as to the outcome of any such legal proceedings.

Our contractual arrangements with our VIEs may be subject to scrutiny by the PRC tax authorities and they may determine that we or our VIEs owe additional taxes, which could negatively affect our financial condition and the value of your investment.

Under applicable PRC laws and regulations, arrangements and transactions among related parties may be subject to audit or challenge by the PRC tax authorities within ten years after the taxable year when the transactions are conducted. The PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law requires every enterprise in China to submit its annual enterprise income tax return together with a report on transactions with its related parties to the relevant tax authorities. The tax authorities may impose reasonable adjustments on taxation if they have identified any related party transactions that are inconsistent with arm’s length principles. We may face material and adverse tax consequences if the PRC tax authorities determine that the contractual arrangements between our WFOE, our VIEs and our VIEs’ shareholders were not entered into on an arm’s length basis in such a way as to result in an impermissible reduction in taxes under applicable PRC laws, rules and regulations, and adjust our VIEs’ income in the form of a transfer pricing adjustment. A transfer pricing adjustment could, among other things, result in a reduction of expense deductions recorded by our VIEs for PRC tax purposes, which could in turn increase its tax liabilities without reducing Yuguan’s taxable income. In addition, if Yuguan requests the shareholders of our VIEs to transfer their equity interest in or the assets of the VIEs at the price prescribed in the contractual agreements, and if such price is deemed below fair market value determined by the tax authority, or if the shareholders of our VIEs pay Yuguan any transfer price or distribution they receive in respect of the equity interests they hold in our VIEs according to the contractual arrangements, Yuguan may be subject to PRC income tax liabilities for such transactions. Furthermore, the PRC tax authorities may impose late payment fees and other penalties on our VIEs for the adjusted but unpaid taxes according to the applicable regulations. Our financial position could be materially and adversely affected if our VIEs’ tax liabilities increase or if they are required to pay late payment fees and other penalties.

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We may lose the ability to use and benefit from assets held by our VIEs that are material to the operation of our business if the entities go bankrupt or becomes subject to a dissolution or liquidation proceeding.

As part of our contractual arrangements with our VIEs, these entities hold certain assets that are material to the operation of our business. If our VIEs go bankrupt and all or part of its assets become subject to liens or rights of third-party creditors, we may be unable to continue some or all of our business activities, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Under the contractual arrangements, our VIEs may not, in any manner, sell, transfer, dispose of any of its material assets (other than those occurring in the ordinary course of business), or create any security interest or other encumbrances on any of its assets for the benefit of any third party, without our prior written consent. If our VIEs undergo a voluntary or involuntary liquidation proceeding, unrelated third-party creditors may claim rights to some or all of these assets, thereby hindering our ability to operate our business, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

Risks Relating to Doing Business in China

Changes in China’s economic, political or social conditions or government policies could have a material and adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

Substantially all of our operations are conducted in China. Accordingly, our results of operations, financial condition and prospects are influenced by economic, political and legal developments in China. China’s economy differs from the economies of most developed countries in many respects, including with respect to the degree of government involvement, level of development, growth rate, control of foreign exchange and allocation of resources. The PRC government exercises significant control over China’s economic growth through strategically allocating resources, controlling the payment of foreign currency-denominated obligations, setting monetary policy and providing preferential treatment to particular industries or companies. While the PRC economy has experienced significant growth over the past decades, that growth has been uneven across different regions and between industry sectors and may not continue, as evidenced by the slowing of the growth of the Chinese economy since 2012. Any adverse changes in economic conditions in China, in the policies of the Chinese government or in the laws and regulations in China could have a material adverse effect on the overall economic growth of China. Such developments could adversely affect our business and operating results, lead to reduction in demand for our services and solutions and adversely affect our competitive position.

Uncertainties with respect to the PRC legal system could adversely affect us.

The PRC legal system is a civil law system based on written statutes. Unlike the common law system, prior court decisions may be cited for reference but have limited precedential value.

In 1979, the PRC government began to promulgate a comprehensive system of laws and regulations governing economic matters in general. The overall effect of legislation over the past decades has significantly enhanced the protections afforded to various forms of foreign investments in China. However, China has not developed a fully integrated legal system, and recently enacted laws and regulations may not sufficiently cover all aspects of economic activities in China. In particular, the interpretation and enforcement of these laws and regulations involve uncertainties. Since the PRC administrative and court authorities have significant discretion in interpreting and implementing statutory and contractual terms, it may be difficult to evaluate the outcome of administrative and court proceedings and the level of legal protection available to you and us.

Furthermore, the PRC legal system is based in part on government policies and internal rules, some of which are not published on a timely basis or at all, and which may have a retroactive effect. As a result, we may not be aware of our violation of any of these policies and rules until sometime after the violation. Such uncertainties, including uncertainty over the scope and effect of our contractual, property (including intellectual property) and procedural rights, and any failure to respond to changes in the regulatory environment in China could materially and adversely affect our business and impede our ability to continue our operations.

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Our business may be significantly affected by the draft Foreign Investment Law, if implemented as proposed.

On January 19, 2015, MOFCOM published the draft Foreign Investment Law. At the same time, MOFCOM published an accompanying explanatory note of the draft Foreign Investment Law, which contains important information about the draft Foreign Investment Law, including its drafting philosophy and principle plans to transition to the new legal regime and treatment of business in China controlled by foreign invested enterprises. The draft Foreign Investment Law proposed significant changes to the PRC foreign investment legal regime and, when implemented, may have a significant impact on businesses in China controlled by foreign invested enterprises primarily through contractual arrangements, such as our business. MOFCOM solicited comments on the draft Foreign Investment Law in 2015, but no new draft has been published since then. There is substantial uncertainty with respect to its final content, interpretation, adoption timeline and effective date. It is anticipated, however, that the draft Foreign Investment Law will impact regulations on variable interest entities. MOFCOM suggests both registration and approval as potential options for the regulation of variable interest entity structures, depending on whether they are “Chinese” or “foreign controlled.” One of the core concepts of the draft Foreign Investment Law is “de facto control,” which emphasizes substance over form in determining whether an entity is “Chinese” or “foreign-controlled.” “Chinese investors” are individuals who are Chinese nationals, Chinese government agencies and any domestic enterprise controlled by Chinese nationals or government agencies. “Foreign investors” are foreign citizens, foreign governments, international organizations and entities controlled by foreign citizens and entities.

The draft Foreign Investment Law has not taken a position on what actions will be taken with respect to the existing companies with a variable interest entity structure, whether or not these companies are controlled by PRC parties, while it solicited comments from the public on this point by illustrating several possible options. Under these varied options, a company that has a variable interest entity structure and conducts the business on the “negative list” at the time of enactment of the new Foreign Investment Law has either the option or obligation to disclose its corporate structure to the authorities, while the authorities, after reviewing the ultimate share control structure of the company, may either permit the company to continue to maintain the variable interest entity structure (if the company is deemed ultimately controlled by PRC nationals), or require the company to dispose of its businesses and/or VIE structure based on circumstantial considerations. Moreover, it is uncertain whether the education and value-added telecommunications industries, in which our VIEs operate, will be subject to the foreign investment restrictions or prohibitions set forth in the “negative list” to be issued. If the enacted version of the Foreign Investment Law and the final “negative list” mandate further actions, such as MOFCOM market entry clearance or certain restructuring of our corporate structure and operations, to be completed by companies with existing VIE structure like us, we face substantial uncertainties as to whether these actions can be completed in a timely manner, or at all, and our business and financial condition may be materially and adversely affected.

The draft Foreign Investment Law, if enacted as proposed, may also materially impact our corporate governance practice and increase our compliance costs. For instance, the draft Foreign Investment Law imposes stringent ad hoc and periodic information reporting requirements on foreign investors and applicable foreign invested enterprises. Aside from investment implementation report and an investment amendment report that are required at each investment and alteration of investment specifics, an annual report is mandatory, and large foreign investors meeting certain criteria are required to report on a quarterly basis. Any company found to be non-compliant with these information reporting obligations may potentially be subject to fines and/or administrative or criminal liabilities, and the persons directly responsible may be subject to criminal liabilities.

We may face risks and uncertainties with respect to the licensing requirement for internet audio-visual programs.

On December 20, 2007, the State Administration of Press Publication Radio Film and Television, or SAPPRFT (currently known as the State Administration of Radio and Television), and MIIT, jointly promulgated the Administrative Provisions on Internet Audio-Visual Program Service, or the Audio-Visual Program

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Provisions, which became effective on January 31, 2008 and was last amended on August 28, 2015. Among other things, the Audio-Visual Program Provisions stipulated that no entities or individuals may provide internet audio-visual program services without a License for Online Transmission of Audio-Visual Programs issued by SAPPRFT or its local bureaus or completing the relevant registration procedures with SAPPRFT or its local bureaus, and only state-owned or state-controlled entities are eligible to apply for a License for Online Transmission of Audio-Visual Programs. On March 17, 2010, SAPPRFT promulgated the Tentative Categories of Internet Audio-Visual Program Services, or the Categories, clarifying the scope of internet audio-visual programs services, which was amended on March 10, 2017. The making and editing of certain specialized audio-visual programs concerning, among other things, educational content, and broadcasting such content to the general public online is covered in the Categories. However, there are still significant uncertainties relating to the interpretation and implementation of the Audio-Visual Program Provisions, in particular, the scope of “internet audio-visual programs.”

Our key English learning products are featured by AI teachers and as part of the components of our courses, we offer short English audio clips on our mobile apps for users to listen and repeat, and then user-recorded audios will be automatically generated, which can be repeatedly played by the users. In our premium service and live courses provided thereunder, which are supplemental to our standard courses, we deliver our courses in live streaming format where the foreign teachers are able to provide live courses to a limited number of specific users. The live audio/video data are transmitted through our mobile apps between the specific recipients instantly without any further redaction. We believe the AI-powered courseware we offer and the live courses we transmit distinguish us from general providers of internet audio-visual program services. However, we cannot assure you that the competent PRC government authorities will not take a view contrary to our opinion. In addition, our community Liuliba allows our users to post audio-visual contents in connection with English learning, which is likely to subject us to the licensing requirement for internet audio-visual programs.

The Categories describe “internet audio-visual program services” in a very broad, vague manner and are unclear as to whether the contents we offer or are available on our platforms fall into the definition of “internet audio-visual programs.” The PRC government may find that our activities mentioned above or any other content offered on our mobile apps fall within the definition of “internet audio-visual programs” and thus are subject to the licensing requirement for internet audio-visual programs. We currently do not hold a License for Online Transmission of Audio-Visual Programs. If the PRC government determines that our content should be considered as “internet audio-visual programs” for the purpose of the Audio-Visual Program Provisions, we may be required to obtain a License for Online Transmission of Audio-Visual Programs. We are, however, not eligible to apply for such license since we are not a state-owned or state-controlled entity. If this were to occur, we may be subject to penalties, fines, legal sanctions or an order to suspend the provision of our relevant content.

We face risks associated with uncertainties surrounding the PRC laws and regulations governing the education industry in general, and the online for-profit private training in particular.

The principal regulations governing private education in China primarily consist of the PRC Education Law, the Law for Promoting Private Education, or Private Education Law, the Implementation Rules for Private Education Law and the Implementation Rules on the Supervision and Administration of For-profit Private Schools, or the Implementation Rules, as amended from time to time. These PRC laws and regulations on private education generally apply to the establishment and operation of all private schools, including schools and other education institutions, and provide that, among others, (i) the establishment of a for-profit private school shall be approved by the education authorities or the authorities in charge of labor and social welfare, (ii) such for-profit private schools should be registered with the competent branch of the SAIC, and (iii) a duly approved private school will be granted a private school operating permit. The Implementation Rules further provide that the provisions contained therein should be applicable to “for-profit private training institutions” in an analogous manner. Shanghai, has accordingly promulgated specific local regulations to clarify the requirements and procedures for establishing and operating private schools in December 2017, however, it expressly provided that management measures and regulations applicable to private training institutions that only provide online courses

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would be promulgated separately. As of the date of this prospectus, no explicit local rules or guideline on regulation of online private training institutions have been promulgated in Shanghai, where our operating entity of our online platform and our VIE, Shanghai Liulishuo, was incorporated.

We operate online platform that provides online training programs through the internet, and our PRC subsidiaries and our operating entity of our online platform are registered with local counterparts of the SAIC as for-profit enterprises. As there lacks clear and consistent statutory interpretation regarding the implementation of the above laws and regulations, it is unclear how these regulatory requirements shall be applied to us. During our previous consultation with relevant governmental authorities, we were informed that we are not required to obtain a private school operating permit or other approval from education authorities or the authorities in charge of labor and social welfare for our operation of online education platform. However, we cannot assure you that the government authorities will not take a different view in the future. We may be required to obtain the above-mentioned, or any other approvals, licenses, permits or filings, or otherwise comply with additional regulatory requirements in the future, due to clarification or change in interpretation or implementation of laws and regulations in education industry, or promulgation of new regulations or guidelines regulating online education institutions.

In August 2018, the Ministry of Justice of the People’s Republic of China published the Draft Amendment for Private Education Law, for public review and comments, which is still subject to discussion, potential revision and adoption by the State Council before it becomes effective. Accordingly, substantial uncertainty remains with respect to its final content, effective date, interpretation and implementation. Nevertheless, such Draft Amendment for Private Education Law proposes changes, clarifications and additional requirements with respect to private schools in addition to the currently effective Private Education Law and relevant implementation rules. In particular, the Draft Amendment for Private Education Law clarifies that the scope of “private school” includes private training education institutions engaging in non-degree education, which could potentially include us. According to the Draft Amendment for Private Education Law, a for-profit private institution that provides online training education or an online platform that facilitates such training education services, which does not engage in (i) cultural education related to school curriculums or tutoring services for kindergarten, primary or second school examinations or entrance requirements for primary, secondary or high school, or (ii) education that leads to a degree, would require a filing with (but not approval by) education or human resources and social security authorities. If enacted into law in its current form, the Draft Amendment for Private Education Law would represent a major change to the laws and regulations relating to private schools, including, among others, (i) the required composition of the board of directors of private schools, (ii) that related party transactions to which a private school is a party would be required to be conducted on a fair and just basis without impediment to the interests of the state, the school, the teachers and the students and any director who is interested in any related party transactions of such private school should abstain from voting to approve any such transactions, and (iii) that, for a for-profit private school, 25% of its net profit per annum should be reserved for its development. If the Draft Amendment for Private Education Law is enacted in its current form, we may be required to change our corporate governance practices and our compliance costs could increase. The Draft Amendment for Private Education Law also expressly provides that any investor controlled by a foreign entity is prohibited from establishing, participating in the establishment of, or exercising de facto control over compulsory education schools. As we do not provide compulsory education services, we believe such prohibition, even if enacted in its current form, would not apply to us.

In August 2018, the State Council issued its new Opinion on the Regulation of the Development of Extracurricular Training Institutions, or the New Opinion, which primarily regulates extracurricular training institutions targeting K-12 students. The New Opinion provides certain detailed requirements for extracurricular training institutions, including, among others, requirements for licenses and permits, training premises, safety conditions and fee collection, as well as for teaching staff and curriculum content. For more information, please see “Regulation—Regulation Related to Private Education—The Law for Promoting Private Education and its Implementing Rules.” The New Opinion generally does not explicitly distinguish between online training institutions and offline training institutions. During previous consultations with relevant local governmental

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authorities, we were informed that the New Opinion only applies to offline training institutions, and so does not apply to us. However, we cannot assure you that the relevant government authorities will not take a different view in the future.

If we fail to comply with any regulatory requirements, including obtaining any required licenses, approvals, permits or filings in a timely manner or at all, our continued business operations may be disrupted and we may be subject to various penalties or be unable to continue our operations, all of which will materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our failure to obtain, maintain or renew other licenses, approvals, permits, registrations or filings necessary to conduct our operations in China could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial conditions and results of operations.

A number of PRC regulatory authorities, such as the SAIC, the CAC, the MIIT, the SAPPRFT, the Ministry of Civil Affairs, and the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Welfare, oversee different aspects of our business operations, and we are required to obtain a wide range of licenses, approvals, permits, registrations and filings required for conducting our business in China, which we cannot assure you that we have obtained all of them or will continue to maintain or renew all of them.

We may be deemed as providing certain restricted services or conduct certain restricted activities and thus be subject to certain licenses, approvals, permits, registrations and filings due to lack official interpretations on certain terms under internet related PRC regulations and laws. For example, certain content posted on our mobile apps, including our course materials, the articles or audio-visual content uploaded by users in Liuliba, may be deemed as “internet cultural products,” and our use of those contents may be regarded as “internet cultural activities,” thus we may be required to obtain an Internet Culture Business Operating License for provision of those contents through our mobile apps. Also, due to the ambiguity of the definition of “online publishing service,” the online distribution of content, including our course materials, the articles or audio-visual contents uploaded by the users in Liuliba, through our mobile apps, may be regarded as “online publishing service” and therefore we may be required to obtain an Online Publishing License. In addition, we deliver certain courses in live-streaming format on our mobile apps which the relevant authorities may regard us as a live-streaming platform and may thus subject us to the requirement of making necessary filings as a live-streaming platform. We currently have not obtained any of the above licenses or have made any such filings. Under current PRC laws and regulations, an information service provider that reposts news for internet publication shall first obtain license from CAC or its local counterpart. Certain learning materials we provide on our platform are from foreign media. Due to the ambiguity of the definition of “news” under the current PRC laws and regulations, we cannot assure you that our provision of such materials will not be deemed by the relevant PRC government authorities as reposting “news” without proper license, which will subject us to various penalties, including fines and suspension of such provision. Although we do not think we are subject to any of these licenses or filing requirements, and as of the date of this prospectus, we have not been subject to any fines or other form of regulatory or administrative penalties or sanctions due to the lack of any the licenses, approvals, permits, registrations and filings, we cannot assure you that the PRC government authorities will not take a different view or will not require us to obtain any additional licenses, approvals, permits, registrations and filings in the future. If we fail to do so, we may be subject to various penalties, such as confiscation of illegal revenues, fines and discontinuation or restriction of business operations, which may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

In addition, there can be no assurance that we will be able to maintain our existing licenses, approvals, registrations or permits necessary to provide our current online services in China, renew any of them when their current term expires, or update existing licenses or obtain additional licenses, approvals, permits, registrations or filings necessary for our business expansion from time to time. If we fail to do so, our business, financial conditions and operational results may be materially and adversely affected.

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We may rely on dividends and other distributions on equity paid by our PRC subsidiaries to fund any cash and financing requirements we may have, and any limitation on the ability of our PRC subsidiaries to make payments to us could have a material and adverse effect on our ability to conduct our business.

We are a holding company, and we may rely on dividends and other distributions on equity paid by our PRC subsidiaries for our cash and financing requirements, including the funds necessary to pay dividends and other cash distributions to our shareholders and service any debt we may incur. For a detailed discussion of applicable PRC regulations governing distribution of dividends, see “Regulation—Regulations Related to Dividend Distribution,” “Regulation—Regulations Related to Taxation” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Holding Company Structure.” Additionally, if our PRC subsidiaries incur debt on their own behalf in the future, the instruments governing their debt may restrict their ability to pay dividends or make other distributions to us. Furthermore, the PRC tax authorities may require our WFOE to adjust its taxable income under the contractual arrangements it currently has in place with our VIEs in a manner that would materially and adversely affect its ability to pay dividends and other distributions to us. See “—Risks Relating to Our Corporate Structure—Our contractual arrangements with our VIEs may be subject to scrutiny by the PRC tax authorities and they may determine that we or our VIEs owe additional taxes, which could negatively affect our financial condition and the value of your investment.”

Any limitation on the ability of our PRC subsidiaries to pay dividends or make other distributions to us could materially and adversely limit our ability to grow, make investments or acquisitions that could be beneficial to our business, pay dividends, or otherwise fund and conduct our business. See also “—Risks Relating to Doing Business in China—Governmental control of currency conversion may limit our ability to utilize our revenues effectively and affect the value of your investment” and “—Risks Relating to Doing Business in China—PRC regulations relating to investments in offshore companies by PRC residents may subject our PRC-resident beneficial owners or our PRC subsidiaries to liability or penalties, limit our ability to inject capital into our PRC subsidiaries or limit our PRC subsidiaries’ ability to increase their registered capital or distribute profits.”

Fluctuations in exchange rates could have a material and adverse effect on our results of operations and the value of your investment.

The value of the Renminbi against the U.S. dollar and other currencies is affected by changes in China’s political and economic conditions and by China’s foreign exchange policies, among other things. In July 2005, the PRC government changed its decades-old policy of pegging the value of Renminbi to the U.S. dollar, and the Renminbi appreciated more than 20% against the U.S. dollar over the following three years. Between July 2008 and June 2010, this appreciation halted and the exchange rate between the Renminbi and the U.S. dollar remained within a narrow band. Since June 2010, the Renminbi has fluctuated against the U.S. dollar, at times significantly and unpredictably. With the development of the foreign exchange market and progress towards interest rate liberalization and Renminbi internationalization, the PRC government may in the future announce further changes to the exchange rate system and we cannot assure you that the Renminbi will not appreciate or depreciate significantly in value against the U.S. dollar in the future. It is difficult to predict how market forces or PRC or U.S. government policy may impact the exchange rate between the Renminbi and the U.S. dollar in the future.

There remains significant international pressure on the PRC government to adopt a more flexible currency policy. Any significant appreciation or depreciation of the Renminbi may materially and adversely affect our revenues, earnings and financial position, and the value of, and any dividends payable on, our ADSs in U.S. dollars. For example, to the extent that we need to convert U.S. dollars we receive from this initial public offering into Renminbi to pay our operating expenses, appreciation of the Renminbi against the U.S. dollar would have an adverse effect on the Renminbi amount we would receive from the conversion. Conversely, a significant depreciation of the Renminbi against the U.S. dollar may significantly reduce the U.S. dollar equivalent of our earnings, which in turn could adversely affect the price of our ADSs.

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Very limited hedging options are available in China to reduce our exposure to exchange rate fluctuations. To date, we have not entered into any hedging transactions in an effort to reduce our exposure to foreign currency exchange risk. While we may decide to enter into hedging transactions in the future, the availability and effectiveness of these hedges may be limited and we may not be able to adequately hedge our exposure or at all. In addition, our currency exchange losses may be magnified by PRC exchange control regulations that restrict our ability to convert Renminbi into foreign currency. As a result, fluctuations in exchange rates may have a material adverse effect on your investment.

PRC regulation of loans to and direct investment in PRC entities by offshore companies and governmental control of currency conversion may delay or prevent us from using the proceeds of our offshore offerings to make loans to our PRC subsidiaries and our VIEs or make additional capital contributions to our PRC subsidiaries, which could materially and adversely affect our liquidity and our ability to fund and expand our business.

Under PRC laws and regulations, we are permitted to utilize the proceeds from this offering to fund our PRC entities by making additional capital contributions to our PRC subsidiaries or providing loans to our PRC subsidiaries and VIEs, subject to applicable government registration and approval requirements. Currently, there is no statutory limit to the amount of funding that we can provide to our PRC subsidiaries through capital contributions. However, the maximum amount we can loan to our PRC subsidiaries and VIEs is subject to statutory limits. According to current PRC laws and regulations, we can provide funding to our PRC subsidiaries through loans of up to either (i) the amount of the difference between the respective registered total investment amount and registered capital of each of our PRC subsidiaries, or the Total Investment and Registered Capital Balance, or (ii) two times, or the then applicable statutory multiple, the amount of their respective net assets, calculated in accordance with PRC GAAP, or the Net Assets Limit, at our election. We may also fund our VIEs through cross-border loans and the maximum amount would be their respective Net Assets Limit. Increasing the Total Investment and Registered Capital Balance of our PRC subsidiaries is subject to governmental procedures and may require a PRC subsidiary to increase its registered capital at the same time. If we choose to make a loan to a PRC entity based on its Net Assets Limit, the maximum amount we would be able to loan to the relevant PRC entity would depend on the relevant entity’s net assets and the applicable statutory multiple at the time of calculation. As of the date of this prospectus, the maximum amount we may loan to our PRC subsidiaries and VIEs in aggregate is US$60 million, as only Yuguan has a positive Total Investment and Registered Capital Balance of US$60 million, and all of our PRC subsidiaries and VIEs have negative or very limited net assets, which prevents us from providing loans to them using the Net Assets Limit. PRC laws and regulations may also impose more stringent limitations to cross-border loans, which will also have negative impact on our ability to fund our PRC entities. Please see “Regulation—Regulations Related to Foreign Exchange—Regulations on Foreign Currency Exchange” and “Regulation—Regulations Related to Foreign Exchange—Regulations on Foreign Debt.” These PRC laws and regulations may significantly limit our ability to use Renminbi converted from the net proceeds of this offering to fund the establishment of new entities in China by our PRC subsidiaries, to invest in or acquire any other PRC companies through our PRC subsidiaries, to fund our existing VIEs or to establish and fund new variable interest entities in China. Moreover, we cannot assure you that we will be able to complete the necessary registrations or obtain the necessary government approvals on a timely basis, if at all, with respect to future loans to our PRC subsidiaries or our VIEs, or future capital contributions by us to our PRC subsidiaries. If we fail to complete such registrations or obtain such approvals or we are found to be in violation of any applicable laws with respect to foreign currency exchange, our ability to use the proceeds we received or expect to receive from our offshore offerings and to capitalize or otherwise fund our PRC operations may be negatively affected and we may be subject to penalties, which could materially and adversely affect our liquidity and our ability to fund and expand our business.

Governmental control of currency conversion may limit our ability to utilize our revenues effectively and affect the value of your investment.

The PRC government imposes controls on the convertibility of Renminbi into foreign currencies and, in certain cases, the remittance of currency out of China. Under existing PRC foreign exchange regulations,

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payments of current account items, such as profit distributions and trade and service-related foreign exchange transactions, can be made in foreign currencies without prior approval from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, or SAFE, by complying with certain procedural requirements. However, approval from or registration with appropriate governmental authorities is required where Renminbi is to be converted into foreign currency and remitted out of China to pay capital expenses such as the repayment of loans denominated in foreign currencies. See “Regulation—Regulations Related to Foreign Exchange—Regulation on Foreign Currency Exchange.”

Since 2016, the PRC government has tightened its foreign exchange policies again and stepped up scrutiny of major outbound capital movement. More restrictions and a substantial vetting process have been put in place by SAFE to regulate cross-border transactions falling under the capital account. The PRC government may also restrict access in the future to foreign currencies for current account transactions, at its discretion. We receive substantially all of our revenues in Renminbi. If the foreign exchange control system prevents us from obtaining sufficient foreign currencies to satisfy our foreign currency demands, we may not be able to pay dividends in foreign currencies to our shareholders, including holders of our ADSs.

PRC regulations relating to investments in offshore companies by PRC residents may subject our PRC-resident beneficial owners or our PRC subsidiaries to liability or penalties, limit our ability to inject capital into our PRC subsidiaries or limit our PRC subsidiaries’ ability to increase their registered capital or distribute profits.

PRC residents are subject to restrictions and filing requirements when investing in offshore companies. SAFE promulgated the Circular on Relevant Issues Concerning Foreign Exchange Control on Domestic Residents’ Offshore Investment and Financing and Roundtrip Investment through Special Purpose Vehicles, or SAFE Circular 37, on July 4, 2014, which replaced the former circular commonly known as “SAFE Circular 75” promulgated by SAFE on October 21, 2005. SAFE Circular 37 requires PRC residents (including individuals and entities) to register with local branches of SAFE in connection with their direct establishment or indirect control of an offshore entity, for the purpose of overseas investment and financing, with such PRC residents’ legally owned assets or equity interests in domestic enterprises or offshore assets or interests, referred to in SAFE Circular 37 as a “special purpose vehicle.” SAFE Circular 37 further requires amendment to the registration in the event of any significant changes with respect to the special purpose vehicle, such as increase or decrease of capital contributed by PRC individuals, share transfer or exchange, merger, division or other material event. In the event that a PRC resident holding interests in a special purpose vehicle fails to fulfill the required SAFE registration, the PRC subsidiaries of that special purpose vehicle may be prohibited from making profit distributions to the offshore parent and from carrying out subsequent cross-border foreign exchange activities, and the special purpose vehicle may be restricted in its ability to contribute additional capital into its PRC subsidiaries. Moreover, failure to comply with the various SAFE registration requirements described above could result in liability under PRC law for evasion of foreign exchange controls. According to the Notice on Further Simplifying and Improving Policies for the Foreign Exchange Administration of Direct Investment released on February 13, 2015 by SAFE, local banks will examine and handle foreign exchange registration for overseas direct investment, including the initial foreign exchange registration and amendment registration, under SAFE Circular 37 from June 1, 2015.

Dr. Yi Wang, Mr. Zheren Hu and Dr. Hui Lin, who are our beneficial owners and PRC residents, completed the initial SAFE registration pursuant to SAFE Circular 75, and are in the process of applying for amendment of such registration reflecting the subsequent change of our shareholding structure since then. There can be no assurance that such amendment of registration can be successfully completed in a timely manner. We have notified and requested all of our shareholders to comply with, or notify their beneficial owners who are PRC residents to comply with, applicable SAFE regulations, including their filing obligation under SAFE Circular 37 and other implementation rules. Nevertheless, we do not have control over our beneficial owners and there can be no assurance that all of our PRC-resident beneficial owners will comply with SAFE Circular 37 and other relevant implementation rules, and there is no assurance that the registration under SAFE Circular 37 and any

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amendment will be completed in a timely manner, or will be completed at all. The failure of our beneficial owners who are PRC residents to register or amend their foreign exchange registrations in a timely manner pursuant to SAFE Circular 37 and other relevant implementation rules, or the failure of future beneficial owners of our company who are PRC residents to comply with the registration procedures set forth in SAFE Circular 37 and subsequent implementation rules, may subject such beneficial owners or our PRC subsidiaries to fines and legal sanctions. Failure to register or comply with relevant requirements may also limit our ability to contribute additional capital to our PRC subsidiaries and limit our PRC subsidiaries’ ability to distribute dividends to our company or conduct other foreign exchange transactions. These risks may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

The M&A Rules and certain other PRC regulations establish complex procedures for some acquisitions of PRC companies by foreign investors, which could make it more difficult for us to pursue growth through acquisitions in China.

A number of PRC laws and regulations have established procedures and requirements that could make merger and acquisition activities in China by foreign investors more time consuming and complex. In addition to the Anti-monopoly Law itself, these include the Regulations on Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors, or the M&A Rules, adopted by six PRC regulatory agencies, and the Rules of MOFCOM on Implementation of Security Review System of Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors, or the Security Review Rules, promulgated in 2011. These laws and regulations impose requirements in some instances that MOFCOM be notified in advance of any change-of-control transaction in which a foreign investor takes control of a PRC domestic enterprise. In addition, the Anti-Monopoly Law requires that MOFCOM be notified in advance of any concentration of undertaking if certain thresholds are triggered. Moreover, the Security Review Rules specify that mergers and acquisitions by foreign investors that raise “national defense and security” concerns and mergers and acquisitions through which foreign investors may acquire de facto control over domestic enterprises that raise “national security” concerns are subject to strict review by MOFCOM, and prohibit any attempt to bypass a security review, including by structuring the transaction through a proxy or contractual control arrangement. In the future, we may grow our business by acquiring complementary businesses. Complying with the requirements of the relevant regulations to complete such transactions could be time consuming, and any required approval processes, including approval from MOFCOM, may delay or inhibit our ability to complete such transactions, which could affect our ability to expand our business or maintain our market share.

Any failure to comply with PRC regulations regarding our employee equity incentive plans may subject the PRC plan participants or us to fines and other legal or administrative sanctions.

Pursuant to SAFE Circular 37, PRC residents who participate in share incentive plans in overseas non-publicly-listed companies due to their position as director, supervisor, senior management or employees of the PRC subsidiaries of the overseas companies may submit applications to SAFE or its local branches for the foreign exchange registration with respect to offshore special purpose companies. Our directors, executive officers and other employees who are PRC residents and who have been granted options may follow SAFE Circular 37 to apply for the foreign exchange registration before our company becomes an overseas listed company. After our company becomes an overseas listed company upon completion of this offering, we and our directors, executive officers and other employees who are PRC residents and who have been granted options will be subject to the Notice on Issues Concerning the Foreign Exchange Administration for Domestic Individuals Participating in Stock Incentive Plan of Overseas Publicly Listed Company, issued by SAFE in February 2012, according to which, employees, directors, supervisors and other management members participating in any stock incentive plan of an overseas publicly listed company who are PRC residents are required to register with SAFE through a domestic qualified agent, which could be a PRC subsidiary of such overseas listed company, and complete certain other procedures. We will make efforts to comply with these requirements upon completion of our initial public offering. However, there can be no assurance that they can successfully register with SAFE in full compliance with the rules. Failure to complete the SAFE registrations may subject them to fines and legal

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sanctions and may also limit the ability to make payment under our equity incentive plans or receive dividends or sales proceeds related thereto, or our ability to contribute additional capital into our PRC subsidiaries and limit our PRC subsidiaries’ ability to distribute dividends to us or our ability to conduct other foreign exchange transactions. We also face regulatory uncertainties that could restrict our ability to adopt additional equity incentive plans for our directors and employees under PRC law.

If we are classified as a PRC resident enterprise for PRC income tax purposes or gains realized with respect to our ADSs or shares are deemed to be from PRC sources, we and our non-PRC shareholders or ADS holders could be subject to unfavorable tax consequences.

Under the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law and its implementation rules, an enterprise established outside of China with a “de facto management body” within China is considered a PRC resident enterprise. The implementation rules define the term “de facto management body” as the body that exercises full and substantial control over and overall management of the business, productions, personnel, accounts and properties of an enterprise. In 2009, the State Administration of Taxation issued a circular, known as Circular 82, which provides certain specific criteria for determining whether the “de facto management body” of a PRC-controlled offshore incorporated enterprise is located in China. Although Circular 82 only applies to offshore enterprises controlled by PRC enterprises or PRC enterprise groups, the criteria set forth in the circular may reflect the State Administration of Taxation’s general position on how the “de facto management body” test should be applied in determining the tax resident status of all offshore enterprises. According to Circular 82, an offshore incorporated enterprise controlled by a PRC enterprise or a PRC enterprise group will be regarded as a PRC tax resident by virtue of having its “de facto management body” in China and will be subject to PRC enterprise income tax on its global income only if all of the following conditions are met: (i) the primary location of the day-to-day operational management is in China; (ii) decisions relating to the enterprise’s financial and human resource matters are made or are subject to approval by organizations or personnel in China; (iii) the enterprise’s primary assets, accounting books and records, company seals, and board and shareholder resolutions, are located or maintained in China; and (iv) at least 50% of voting board members or senior executives habitually reside in China.

We believe that none of our entities outside of China is a PRC resident enterprise for PRC tax purposes. However, the tax resident status of an enterprise is subject to determination by the PRC tax authorities and uncertainties remain with respect to the interpretation of the term “de facto management body.” If the PRC tax authorities determine that we are a PRC resident enterprise for enterprise income tax purposes, we will be subject to the enterprise income tax on our global income at the rate of 25% and we will be required to comply with PRC enterprise income tax reporting obligations. In addition, gains realized on the sale or other disposition of our ADSs or Class A ordinary shares may be subject to PRC tax, at a rate of 10% in the case of non-PRC enterprises or 20% in the case of non-PRC individuals (in each case, subject to the provisions of any applicable tax treaty), if such gains are deemed to be from PRC sources. It is unclear whether non-PRC shareholders of our company would be able to claim the benefits of any tax treaties between their country of tax residence and the PRC in the event that we are treated as a PRC resident enterprise. Any such tax may reduce the returns on your investment in the ADSs.

We may not be able to obtain certain benefits under the relevant tax arrangement for dividends paid by our PRC subsidiaries to us through our Hong Kong subsidiary.

We are a holding company incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands and as such rely on dividends and other distributions on equity from our PRC subsidiaries to satisfy part of our liquidity requirements. Pursuant to the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law, a withholding tax rate of 10% currently applies to dividends paid by a PRC “resident enterprise” to a foreign enterprise investor, unless any such foreign investor’s jurisdiction of incorporation has a tax treaty or similar arrangements with China that provides for preferential tax treatment. Pursuant to the Arrangement between the Mainland China and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and Tax Evasion on Income, such withholding tax rate may be lowered to 5%

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if a Hong Kong resident enterprise owns no less than 25% of a PRC enterprise. Furthermore, the Administrative Measures for Non-Resident Enterprises to Enjoy Treatments under Tax Treaties, which became effective in November 2015, require non-resident enterprises to determine whether they are qualified to enjoy the preferential tax treatment under the tax treaties and file relevant report and materials with the tax authorities. There are also other conditions for enjoying the reduced withholding tax rate according to other relevant tax rules and regulations. See “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Taxation—PRC.” We cannot assure you that our determination regarding our qualification to enjoy the preferential tax treatment will not be challenged by the relevant tax authority or we will be able to complete the necessary filings with the relevant tax authority and enjoy the preferential withholding tax rate of 5% under the arrangement with respect to any dividends to be paid by our PRC subsidiaries to our Hong Kong subsidiary.

We and our shareholders face uncertainty with respect to indirect transfers of equity interests in PRC resident enterprises, assets attributed to a PRC establishment of a non-PRC company or immovable properties located in China owned by non-PRC companies.

In February 2015, the State Administration of Taxation issued the Bulletin on Issues of Enterprise Income Tax on Indirect Transfers of Assets by Non-PRC Resident Enterprises, or SAT Bulletin 7, which partially replaced and supplemented previous rules under the Notice on Strengthening Administration of Enterprise Income Tax for Share Transfers by Non-PRC Resident Enterprises, or SAT Circular 698. In October, 2017, the State Administration of Taxation issued the Announcement on Issues Concerning the Withholding of Non-PRC Resident Enterprise Income Tax at Source, or SAT Bulletin 37. The SAT Bulletin 37 further clarifies the practice and procedure of the withholding of non-PRC resident enterprise income tax and replaced SAT Circular 698. Pursuant to SAT Bulletin 7, an “indirect transfer” of assets, including equity interests in a PRC resident enterprise, by non-PRC resident enterprises may be re-characterized and treated as a direct transfer of PRC taxable assets, if the arrangement does not have a reasonable commercial purpose and was established for the purpose of avoiding payment of PRC enterprise income tax. As a result, gains derived from the indirect transfer may be subject to PRC enterprise income tax. According to SAT Bulletin 7, “PRC taxable assets” include assets attributed to an establishment in China, immovable properties located in China, and equity investments in PRC resident enterprises. Gains derived from the transfer of PRC taxable assets by a direct holder that is a non-PRC resident enterprise is subject to PRC enterprise income taxes. When determining whether an arrangement has a “reasonable commercial purpose,” the following factors are considered: whether the value of the equity interest of the relevant offshore enterprise is mainly derived from PRC taxable assets; whether the assets of the relevant offshore enterprise mainly consist of direct or indirect investment in China; whether the income of the relevant offshore enterprise is mainly generated from China; whether the offshore enterprise and its subsidiaries directly or indirectly holding PRC taxable assets have real commercial nature as evidenced by actual function and risk exposure; for how long the existing business model and organizational structure of the relevant offshore enterprise has existed; the replicability of the arrangement by direct transfer of PRC taxable assets; and the tax situation of such indirect transfer and applicable tax treaties or similar arrangements. Gains derived from an indirect offshore transfer of assets of a PRC establishment or place of business are to be included in the enterprise income tax filing of the PRC establishment or place of business, and are subject to a PRC enterprise income tax rate of 25%. In case of a transfer of immovable properties located in China or of equity investments in a PRC resident enterprise, which is not related to a PRC establishment or place of business of a non-resident enterprise, a PRC enterprise income tax rate of 10% applies, subject to available preferential tax treatment under applicable tax treaties or similar arrangements. The party who is obligated to pay for the transfer has the withholding obligation with respect to the transfer. Where the payor fails to withhold sufficient tax, the transferor is required to declare and pay such tax to the tax authority by itself within the statutory time limit. Late payment of applicable tax will subject the transferor to default interest. Failure to withhold applicable tax will also subject the transferee to penalties under PRC tax laws. SAT Bulletin 7 does not apply to sales of shares by investors through a public stock exchange if the shares were acquired by the investors through a public stock exchange.

We face uncertainties as to the application of SAT Bulletin 7 and/or SAT Bulletin 37, including reporting and other obligations with respect to certain past and future transactions where PRC taxable assets are involved,

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such as offshore restructuring, sale of the shares in our offshore subsidiaries or investments. We may be subject to filing obligations or taxed as the transferor, or subject to withholding obligations as the transferee, in the transactions. For transfer of our shares by investors that are non-PRC resident enterprises, our PRC subsidiaries may be requested to assist in filings under SAT Bulletin 7 and/or SAT Bulletin 37. We may be required to allocate valuable resources to comply with SAT Bulletin 7 and/or SAT Bulletin 37, to request relevant transferors from whom we purchase taxable assets to comply with these rules, or to establish that we should not be taxed under these rules, which may have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

The audit report included in this prospectus is prepared by an auditor who is not inspected by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board and, as such, our investors are deprived of the benefits of such inspection.

The independent registered public accounting firm that issues the audit report included in this prospectus, as auditors of companies that are traded publicly in the United States and a firm registered with the U.S. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, or the PCAOB, is required by the laws of the United States to undergo regular inspections by the PCAOB to assess its compliance with the laws of the United States and professional standards. Because our auditors are located in China, a jurisdiction where the PCAOB is currently unable to conduct inspections without the approval of the Chinese authorities, our auditors are not currently inspected by the PCAOB.

Inspections of other firms that the PCAOB has conducted outside China have identified deficiencies in those firms’ audit procedures and quality control procedures, which may be addressed as part of the inspection process to improve future audit quality. This lack of PCAOB inspections in China prevents the PCAOB from regularly evaluating our auditor’s audits and its quality control procedures. As a result, investors may be deprived of the benefits of PCAOB inspections.

The inability of the PCAOB to conduct inspections of auditors in China makes it more difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of our auditor’s audit procedures or quality control procedures as compared to auditors outside of China that are subject to PCAOB inspections. Investors may lose confidence in our reported financial information and procedures and the quality of our financial statements.

If additional remedial measures are imposed on the “big four” PRC-based accounting firms, including our independent registered public accounting firm, in administrative proceedings brought by the SEC alleging such firms’ failure to meet specific criteria set by the SEC with respect to requests for the production of documents, we could fail to timely file future financial statements in compliance with the requirements of the Exchange Act.

In late 2012, the SEC commenced administrative proceedings under Rule 102(e) of its Rules of Practice and also under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 against the Chinese affiliates of the “big four” accounting firms (including our auditors). The Rule 102(e) proceedings initiated by the SEC relate to these firms’ inability to produce documents, including audit work papers, in response to the request of the SEC pursuant to Section 106 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, as the auditors located in China are not in a position to lawfully produce documents directly to the SEC because of restrictions under PRC law and specific directives issued by the China Securities Regulatory Commission, or the CSRC. The issues raised by the proceedings are not specific to our auditors or to us, but affect equally all audit firms based in China and all China-based businesses with securities listed in the United States.

In January 2014, the administrative judge reached an initial decision that the Chinese affiliates of the “big four” accounting firms should be barred from practicing before the SEC for six months. Thereafter, the accounting firms filed a petition for review of the initial decision, prompting the SEC Commissioners to review the initial decision, determine whether there had been any violation and, if so, determine the appropriate remedy to be placed on these audit firms.

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In February 2015, the Chinese affiliates of the “big four” accounting firms (including our auditors) each agreed to a censure and to pay a fine to the SEC to settle the dispute and avoid suspension of their ability to practice before the SEC and audit U.S.-listed companies. The settlement requires the firms to follow detailed procedures and to seek to provide the SEC with access to the Chinese firms’ audit documents via the CSRC. If future document productions fail to meet the specified criteria, the SEC retains the authority to impose a variety of additional measures (e.g., imposing penalties such as suspensions, restarting the administrative proceedings).

In the event that the SEC restarts the administrative proceedings, depending upon the final outcome, companies listed in the United States with major PRC operations may find it difficult or impossible to retain auditors in respect of their operations in China, which could result in financial statements being determined to not be in compliance with the requirements of the Exchange Act, and could result in delisting. Moreover, any negative news about the proceedings against these audit firms may cause investor uncertainty regarding China-based companies listed in the United States and the market price of our shares may be adversely affected. If our independent registered public accounting firm was denied, whether temporarily or otherwise, the ability to practice before the SEC and we were unable to timely find another registered public accounting firm to audit and issue an opinion on our financial statements, our financial statements could be determined to not be in compliance with the requirements of the Exchange Act.

Risks Relating to Our ADSs and This Offering

An active trading market for our ordinary shares or our ADSs may not develop and the trading price for our ADSs may fluctuate significantly.

We intend to apply to list our ADSs on the New York Stock Exchange. Prior to the completion of this offering, there has been no public market for our ADSs or our ordinary shares, and we cannot assure you that a liquid public market for our ADSs will develop. If an active public market for our ADSs does not develop following the completion of this offering, the market price and liquidity of our ADSs may be materially and adversely affected. The initial public offering price for our ADSs was determined by negotiation between us and the underwriters based upon several factors, and we can provide no assurance that the trading price of our ADSs after this offering will not decline below the initial public offering price. As a result, investors in our securities may experience a significant decrease in the value of their ADSs.

The trading price of our ADSs is likely to be volatile, which could result in substantial losses to investors.

The trading price of our ADSs is likely to be volatile and could fluctuate widely due to factors beyond our control. This may happen because of broad market and industry factors, like the performance and fluctuation of the market prices of other companies with business operations located mainly in China that have listed their securities in the United States. A number of Chinese companies have listed or are in the process of listing their securities on U.S. stock markets. The securities of some of these companies have experienced significant volatility, including price declines in connection with their initial public offerings. The trading performances of these Chinese companies’ securities after their offerings may affect the attitudes of investors toward Chinese companies listed in the United States in general and consequently may impact the trading performance of our ADSs, regardless of our actual operating performance.

In addition to market and industry factors, the price and trading volume for our ADSs may be highly volatile for factors specific to our own operations, including the following:

• variations in our revenues, earnings and cash flow;

• announcements of new investments, acquisitions, strategic partnerships or joint ventures by us or our competitors;

• announcements of new services and expansions by us or our competitors;

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• announcements of new policies, rules or regulations relating to the internet or the financial services industry in China;

• changes in financial estimates by securities analysts;

• detrimental adverse publicity about us, our services, our competitors or our industry;

• additions or departures of key personnel;

• release of lock-up or other transfer restrictions on our outstanding equity securities or sales of additional equity securities; and

• potential litigation or regulatory investigations.

Any of these factors may result in large and sudden changes in the volume and price at which our ADSs will trade.

In the past, shareholders of public companies have often brought securities class action suits against those companies following periods of instability in the market price of their securities. If we were involved in a class action suit, it could divert a significant amount of our management’s attention and other resources from our business and operations and require us to incur significant expenses to defend the suit, which could harm our results of operations. Any such class action suit, whether or not successful, could harm our reputation and restrict our ability to raise capital in the future. In addition, if a claim is successfully made against us, we may be required to pay significant damages, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Our dual-class share structure with different voting rights will limit your ability to influence corporate matters and could discourage others from pursuing any change of control transactions that holders of our Class A ordinary shares and ADSs may view as beneficial.

We have a dual-class share structure such that our ordinary shares consist of Class A ordinary shares and Class B ordinary shares. Each ordinary share is currently entitled to one vote. Immediately after the completion of this offering, each Class B ordinary share will become entitled to ten votes, whereas each Class A ordinary share will continue to be entitled to one vote. We will sell Class A ordinary shares represented by our ADSs in this offering. Each Class B ordinary share is convertible into one Class A ordinary share at any time by the holder thereof, while Class A ordinary shares are not convertible into Class B ordinary shares under any circumstances. Upon any sale, transfer, assignment or disposition of any Class B ordinary share by a founder to any person who is not a founder or an affiliate of founder, or upon a change of ultimate beneficial ownership of any Class B ordinary share from a founder to any person who is not a founder or an affiliate of founder, such Class B ordinary share shall be automatically and immediately converted into the same number of Class A ordinary share.

Our founders, Dr. Yi Wang, Mr. Zheren Hu, and Dr. Hui Lin, beneficially own all of our outstanding Class B ordinary shares. Immediately prior to the completion of this offering, Dr. Yi Wang, Mr. Zheren Hu, and Dr. Hui Lin beneficially own approximately 27.9%, 11.9%, and 6.9% of the aggregate voting power of our company, and will beneficially own approximately         %,         %, and         % of the aggregate voting power of our company upon the completion of this offering, assuming the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option. As a result of the dual-class share structure and the concentration of ownership, holders of our Class B ordinary shares will have considerable influence over matters such as decisions regarding mergers, consolidations and the sale of all or substantially all of our assets, election of directors and other significant corporate actions. They may take actions that are not in the best interest of us or our other shareholders. This concentration of ownership may discourage, delay or prevent a change in control of our company, which could have the effect of depriving our other shareholders of the opportunity to receive a premium for their shares as part of a sale of our company and may reduce the price of our ADSs. This concentrated control will limit your ability to influence corporate matters and could discourage others from pursuing any potential merger, takeover

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or other change of control transactions that holders of Class A ordinary shares and ADSs may view as beneficial. In addition, we may incur incremental compensation expenses to the holders of Class B ordinary share as a result of their becoming entitled to high votes on each Class B ordinary share immediately after the completion of this offering.

The dual-class structure of our ordinary shares may adversely affect the trading market for our ADSs.

S&P Dow Jones and FTSE Russell have changed their eligibility criteria for inclusion of shares of public companies on certain indices, including the S&P 500, to exclude companies with multiple classes of shares and companies whose public shareholders hold no more than 5% of total voting power from being added to such indices. In addition, several shareholder advisory firms have announced their opposition to the use of multiple class structures. As a result, the dual class structure of our ordinary shares may prevent the inclusion of our ADSs representing Class A ordinary shares in such indices and may cause shareholder advisory firms to publish negative commentary about our corporate governance practices or otherwise seek to cause us to change our capital structure. Any such exclusion from indices could result in a less active trading market for our ADSs. Any actions or publications by shareholder advisory firms critical of our corporate governance practices or capital structure could also adversely affect the value of our ADSs.

If securities or industry analysts do not publish research or reports about our business, or if they adversely change their recommendations regarding our ADSs, the market price for our ADSs and trading volume could decline.

The trading market for our ADSs will be influenced by research or reports that industry or securities analysts publish about our business. If one or more analysts who cover us downgrade our ADSs, the market price for our ADSs would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts cease to cover us or fail to regularly publish reports on us, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which in turn could cause the market price or trading volume for our ADSs to decline.

The sale or availability for sale of substantial amounts of our ADSs could adversely affect their market price.

Sales of substantial amounts of our ADSs in the public market after the completion of this offering, or the perception that these sales could occur, could adversely affect the market price of our ADSs and could materially impair our ability to raise capital through equity offerings in the future. The ADSs sold in this offering will be freely tradable without restriction or further registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, and shares held by our existing shareholders may also be sold in the public market in the future subject to the restrictions in Rule 144 and Rule 701 under the Securities Act and the applicable lock-up agreements. There will be              ADSs (equivalent to              Class A ordinary shares) outstanding immediately after this offering, or              ADSs (equivalent to              Class A ordinary shares) if the underwriters exercise their option to purchase additional ADSs in full. In connection with this offering, we, our shareholders, our officers, and our directors, have agreed not to sell any ordinary shares or ADSs for 180 days after the date of this prospectus without the prior written consent of the representatives of the underwriters. However, the underwriters may release these securities from these restrictions at any time, subject to applicable regulations of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. We cannot predict what effect, if any, market sales of securities held by our significant shareholders or any other shareholder or the availability of these securities for future sale will have on the market price of our ADSs. See “Underwriting” and “Shares Eligible for Future Sale” for a more detailed description of the restrictions on selling our securities after this offering.

Because we do not expect to pay dividends in the foreseeable future after this offering, you must rely on price appreciation of our ADSs for return on your investment.

We currently intend to retain most, if not all, of our available funds and any future earnings after this offering to fund the development and growth of our business. As a result, we do not expect to pay any cash

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dividends in the foreseeable future. Therefore, you should not rely on an investment in our ADSs as a source for any future dividend income.

Our board of directors has complete discretion as to whether to distribute dividends. Even if our board of directors decides to declare and pay dividends, the timing, amount and form of future dividends, if any, will depend on, among other things, our future results of operations and cash flow, our capital requirements and surplus, the amount of distributions, if any, received by us from our subsidiary, our financial condition, contractual restrictions and other factors deemed relevant by our board of directors. Accordingly, the return on your investment in our ADSs will likely depend entirely upon any future price appreciation of our ADSs. There is no guarantee that our ADSs will appreciate in value after this offering or even maintain the price at which you purchased the ADSs. You may not realize a return on your investment in our ADSs and you may even lose your entire investment in our ADSs.

Because the initial public offering price is substantially higher than the pro forma net tangible book value per share, you will experience immediate and substantial dilution.

If you purchase ADSs in this offering, you will pay more for each ADS than the corresponding amount paid by existing shareholders for their Class A ordinary shares. As a result, you will experience immediate and substantial dilution of approximately US$              per ADS (assuming that no outstanding options to acquire Class A ordinary shares are exercised). This number represents the difference between (1) our pro forma net tangible book value as adjusted per ADS of US$              as of             , after giving effect to this offering and the concurrent private placements and (2) the initial public offering price of US$             per ADS. See “Dilution” for a more complete description of how the value of your investment in our ADSs will be diluted upon the completion of this offering.

We have not determined a specific use for a portion of the net proceeds from this offering, and we may use these proceeds in ways with which you may not agree.

We have not determined a specific use for a portion of the net proceeds of this offering, and our management will have considerable discretion in deciding how to apply these proceeds. You will not have the opportunity to assess whether the proceeds are being used appropriately before you make your investment decision. You must rely on the judgment of our management regarding the application of the net proceeds of this offering. We cannot assure you that the net proceeds will be used in a manner that will improve our results of operations or increase our ADS price, nor that these net proceeds will be placed only in investments that generate income or appreciate in value.

There can be no assurance that we will not be classified as a passive foreign investment company, or PFIC, for U.S. federal income tax purposes for any taxable year, which could result in adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences to U.S. holders of our ADSs or Class A ordinary shares.

A non-U.S. corporation will be classified as a passive foreign investment company, or PFIC, for any taxable year if either (1) at least 75% of its gross income for such year consists of certain types of “passive” income; or (2) at least 50% of the value of its assets (based on an average of the quarterly values of the assets) during such year is attributable to assets that produce passive income or are held for the production of passive income. Based on our current and expected income and assets (taking into account the expected cash proceeds and our anticipated market capitalization following this offering), we do not presently expect to be a PFIC for the current taxable year or the foreseeable future. However, no assurance can be given in this regard because the determination of whether we are or will become a PFIC is a fact-intensive inquiry made on an annual basis that depends, in part, upon the composition of our income and assets. Fluctuations in the market price of our ADSs may cause us to become a PFIC for the current or subsequent taxable years because the value of our assets for the purpose of the second part of the test described above may be determined by reference to the market price of our ADSs. The composition of our income and assets may also be affected by how, and how quickly, we use our liquid assets and the cash raised in this offering.

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If we were to be or become a PFIC for any taxable year during which a U.S. Holder (as defined in “Taxation—United States Federal Income Tax Considerations”) holds our ADSs or Class A ordinary shares, certain adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences could apply to such U.S. Holder. See “Taxation—United States Federal Income Tax Considerations—Passive Foreign Investment Company Rules.”

The approval of the China Securities Regulatory Commission may be required in connection with this offering under PRC law.

The M&A Rules, which were adopted in 2006 by six PRC regulatory agencies, including the CSRC, purport to require offshore special purpose vehicles that are controlled by PRC companies or individuals and that have been formed for the purpose of seeking a public listing on an overseas stock exchange through acquisitions of PRC domestic companies or assets to obtain CSRC approval prior to publicly listing their securities on an overseas stock exchange. The interpretation and application of the regulations remain unclear, and this offering may ultimately require approval from the CSRC. If CSRC approval is required, it is uncertain how long it will take us to obtain the approval and any failure to obtain or delay in obtaining CSRC approval for this offering would subject us to sanctions imposed by the CSRC and other PRC regulatory agencies, which could include fines and penalties on our operations in China, restrictions or limitations on our ability to pay dividends outside of China, and other forms of sanctions that may materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Our PRC counsel, Fangda Partners, has advised us that, based on its understanding of the current PRC laws and regulations, we will not be required to submit an application to the CSRC for the approval of the listing and trading of our ADSs on the New York Stock Exchange because (i) our wholly owned PRC subsidiaries were established by foreign direct investment, rather than through a merger or acquisition of a domestic company as defined under the M&A Rules, and (ii) there is no statutory provision that clearly classifies the contractual arrangements among our WOFE, our VIEs and their shareholders as a type of acquisition transaction regulated by the M&A Rules. However, we cannot assure you that relevant PRC government agencies, including the CSRC, would reach the same conclusion as our PRC counsel, and hence we may face regulatory actions or other sanctions from the CSRC or other PRC regulatory agencies. These regulatory agencies may impose fines and penalties on our operations in China, limit our operating privileges in China, delay or restrict the repatriation of the proceeds from this offering into China or take other actions that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects, as well as the trading price of the ADSs. The CSRC or other PRC regulatory agencies also may take actions requiring us, or making it advisable for us, to halt this offering before settlement and delivery of the ADSs offered hereby. Consequently, if you engage in market trading or other activities in anticipation of and prior to settlement and delivery, you do so at the risk that settlement and delivery may not occur. In addition, if the CSRC or other regulatory agencies later promulgate new rules or explanations requiring that we obtain their approvals for this offering, we may be unable to obtain a waiver of such approval requirements, if and when procedures are established to obtain such a waiver. Any uncertainties and/or negative publicity regarding such approval requirement could have a material adverse effect on the trading price of the ADSs.

Our memorandum and articles of association contain anti-takeover provisions that could have a material adverse effect on the rights of holders of our Class A ordinary shares and ADSs.

We will adopt amended and restated memorandum and articles of association that will become effective immediately prior to the completion of this offering. Our new memorandum and articles of association contain provisions to limit the ability of others to acquire control of our company or cause us to engage in change-of-control transactions. These provisions could have the effect of depriving our shareholders of an opportunity to sell their shares at a premium over prevailing market prices by discouraging third parties from seeking to obtain control of our company in a tender offer or similar transaction. Our dual-class voting structure gives disproportionate voting power to the Class B ordinary shares immediately after the completion of this offering. In addition, our board of directors will have the authority, without further action by our shareholders, to

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issue preferred shares in one or more series and to fix their designations, powers, preferences, privileges, and relative participating, optional or special rights and the qualifications, limitations or restrictions, including dividend rights, conversion rights, voting rights, terms of redemption and liquidation preferences, any or all of which may be greater than the rights associated with our Class A ordinary shares, in the form of ADS or otherwise. Preferred shares could be issued quickly with terms calculated to delay or prevent a change in control of our company or make removal of management more difficult. If our board of directors decides to issue preferred shares, the price of our ADSs may fall and the voting and other rights of the holders of our Class A ordinary shares and ADSs may be materially and adversely affected.

You may face difficulties in protecting your interests, and your ability to protect your rights through U.S. courts may be limited, because we are incorporated under Cayman Islands law.

We are an exempted company incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands. Our corporate affairs are governed by our memorandum and articles of association, the Companies Law of the Cayman Islands, as amended from time to time, and the common law of the Cayman Islands. The rights of shareholders to take action against the directors, actions by minority shareholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our directors to us under Cayman Islands law are to a large extent governed by the common law of the Cayman Islands. The common law of the Cayman Islands is derived in part from comparatively limited judicial precedent in the Cayman Islands as well as from the common law of England, the decisions of whose courts are of persuasive authority, but are not binding, on a court in the Cayman Islands. The rights of our shareholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our directors under Cayman Islands law are not as clearly established as they would be under statutes or judicial precedent in some jurisdictions in the United States. In particular, the Cayman Islands has a less developed body of securities laws than the United States. Some U.S. states, such as Delaware, have more fully developed and judicially interpreted bodies of corporate law than the Cayman Islands. In addition, Cayman Islands companies may not have standing to initiate a shareholder derivative action in a federal court of the United States.

Shareholders of Cayman Islands exempted companies like us have no general rights under Cayman Islands law to inspect corporate records (other than the memorandum and articles of associations) or to obtain copies of lists of shareholders of these companies. Our directors have discretion under our post-offering memorandum and articles of association to determine whether or not, and under what conditions, our corporate records may be inspected by our shareholders, but are not obliged to make them available to our shareholders. This may make it more difficult for you to obtain the information needed to establish any facts necessary for a shareholder motion or to solicit proxies from other shareholders in connection with a proxy contest.

Certain corporate governance practices in the Cayman Islands, which is our home country, differ significantly from requirements for companies incorporated in other jurisdictions such as the United States. If we choose to follow home country practice, our shareholders may be afforded less protection than they otherwise would under rules and regulations applicable to U.S. domestic issuers.

As a result of all of the above, our public shareholders may have more difficulty in protecting their interests in the face of actions taken by management, members of the board of directors or controlling shareholders than they would as public shareholders of a company incorporated in the United States. For a discussion of significant differences between the provisions of the Companies Law of the Cayman Islands and the laws applicable to companies incorporated in the United States and their shareholders, see “Description of Share Capital—Differences in Corporate Law.”

Certain judgments obtained against us by our shareholders may not be enforceable.

We are a Cayman Islands exempted company and all of our assets are located outside of the United States. Substantially all of our current operations are conducted in China. In addition, most of our current directors and officers are nationals and residents of countries other than the United States. All or a substantial portion of the

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assets of these persons are located outside the United States. As a result, it may be difficult or impossible for you to bring an action against us or against these individuals in the United States in the event that you believe that your rights have been infringed under the U.S. federal securities laws or otherwise. Even if you are successful in bringing an action of this kind, the laws of the Cayman Islands and of China may render you unable to enforce a judgment against us, our assets, our directors and officers or their assets. For more information regarding the relevant laws of the Cayman Islands and China, see “Enforceability of Civil Liabilities.”

We are an emerging growth company within the meaning of the Securities Act and may take advantage of certain reduced reporting requirements.

We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in the JOBS Act, and we may take advantage of certain exemptions from requirements applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, most significantly, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 for so long as we are an emerging growth company until the fifth anniversary from the date of our initial listing.

The JOBS Act also provides that an emerging growth company does not need to comply with any new or revised financial accounting standards until such date that a private company is otherwise required to comply with such new or revised accounting standards. However, we have elected to “opt out” of this provision and, as a result, we will comply with new or revised accounting standards as required when they are adopted for public companies. This decision to opt out of the extended transition period under the JOBS Act is irrevocable.

We will incur increased costs as a result of being a public company, particularly after we cease to qualify as an “emerging growth company.”

We are a public company and expect to incur significant legal, accounting and other expenses that we did not incur as a private company. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, as well as rules subsequently implemented by the SEC and the New York Stock Exchange, impose various requirements on the corporate governance practices of public companies. We expect these rules and regulations to increase our legal and financial compliance costs and to make some corporate activities more time-consuming and costly. As a company with less than US$1.07 billion in revenues for our last fiscal year, we qualify as an “emerging growth company” pursuant to the JOBS Act. An emerging growth company may take advantage of specified reduced reporting and other requirements that are otherwise applicable generally to public companies. After we are no longer an “emerging growth company,” we expect to incur significant expenses and devote substantial management effort toward ensuring compliance with the requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the other rules and regulations of the SEC.

As a result of becoming a public company, we will need to increase the number of independent directors and adopt policies regarding internal controls and disclosure controls and procedures. We also expect that operating as a public company will make it more difficult and more expensive for us to obtain director and officer liability insurance, and we may be required to accept reduced policy limits and coverage or incur substantially higher costs to obtain the same or similar coverage. In addition, we will incur additional costs associated with our public company reporting requirements. It may also be more difficult for us to find qualified persons to serve on our board of directors or as executive officers. We are currently evaluating and monitoring developments with respect to these rules and regulations, and we cannot predict or estimate with any degree of certainty the amount of additional costs we may incur or the timing of such costs.

In the past, shareholders of a public company often brought securities class action suits against the company following periods of instability in the market price of that company’s securities. If we were involved in a class action suit, it could divert a significant amount of our management’s attention and other resources from our business and operations, which could harm our results of operations and require us to incur significant expenses to defend the suit. Any such class action suit, whether or not successful, could harm our reputation and restrict

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our ability to raise capital in the future. In addition, if a claim is successfully made against us, we may be required to pay significant damages, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

We are a foreign private issuer within the meaning of the rules under the Exchange Act, and as such we are exempt from certain provisions applicable to United States domestic public companies.

Because we are a foreign private issuer under the Exchange Act, we are exempt from certain provisions of the securities rules and regulations in the United States that are applicable to U.S. domestic issuers, including:

• the rules under the Exchange Act requiring the filing of quarterly reports on Form 10-Q or current reports on Form 8-K with the SEC;

• the sections of the Exchange Act regulating the solicitation of proxies, consents, or authorizations in respect of a security registered under the Exchange Act;

• the sections of the Exchange Act requiring insiders to file public reports of their stock ownership and trading activities and liability for insiders who profit from trades made in a short period of time; and

• the selective disclosure rules by issuers of material nonpublic information under Regulation FD.

We will be required to file an annual report on Form 20-F within four months of the end of each fiscal year. In addition, we intend to publish our results on a quarterly basis through press releases, distributed pursuant to the rules and regulations of the New York Stock Exchange. Press releases relating to financial results and material events will also be furnished to the SEC on Form 6-K. However, the information we are required to file with or furnish to the SEC will be less extensive and less timely than that required to be filed with the SEC by U.S. domestic issuers. As a result, you may not be afforded the same protections or information that would be made available to you were you investing in a U.S. domestic issuer.

The voting rights of holders of ADSs are limited by the terms of the deposit agreement, and you may not be able to exercise your right to vote your Class A ordinary shares.

As a holder of our ADSs, you will only be able to exercise the voting rights with respect to the underlying Class A ordinary shares in accordance with the provisions of the deposit agreement. Under the deposit agreement, you must vote by giving voting instructions to the depositary. Upon receipt of your voting instructions, the depositary will vote the underlying Class A ordinary shares in accordance with these instructions. You will not be able to directly exercise your right to vote with respect to the underlying shares unless you withdraw the shares. Under our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association that will become effective immediately prior to the completion of this offering, the minimum notice period required for convening a general meeting is 14 days. When a general meeting is convened, you may not receive sufficient advance notice to withdraw the shares underlying your ADSs to allow you to vote with respect to any specific matter. If we ask for your instructions, the depositary will notify you of the upcoming vote and will arrange to deliver our voting materials to you. We cannot assure you that you will receive the voting materials in time to ensure that you can instruct the depositary to vote your shares. In addition, the depositary and its agents are not responsible for failing to carry out voting instructions or for their manner of carrying out your voting instructions. This means that you may not be able to exercise your right to vote and you may have no legal remedy if the shares underlying your ADSs are not voted as you requested.

The depositary for our ADSs will give us a discretionary proxy to vote our Class A ordinary shares underlying your ADSs if you do not vote at shareholders’ meetings, except in limited circumstances, which could adversely affect your interests.

Under the deposit agreement for the ADSs, if you do not vote, the depositary will give us a discretionary proxy to vote our Class A ordinary shares underlying your ADSs at shareholders’ meetings unless:

• we have failed to timely provide the depositary with notice of meeting and related voting materials;

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• we have instructed the depositary that we do not wish a discretionary proxy to be given;

• we have informed the depositary that there is substantial opposition as to a matter to be voted on at the meeting;

• a matter to be voted on at the meeting would have a material adverse impact on shareholders; or

• the voting at the meeting is to be made on a show of hands.

The effect of this discretionary proxy is that if you do not vote at shareholders’ meetings, you cannot prevent our Class A ordinary shares underlying your ADSs from being voted, except under the circumstances described above. This may make it more difficult for shareholders to influence the management of our company. Holders of our ordinary shares are not subject to this discretionary proxy.

You may not receive dividends or other distributions on our Class A ordinary shares and you may not receive any value for them, if it is illegal or impractical to make them available to you.

The depositary of our ADSs has agreed to pay you the cash dividends or other distributions it or the custodian receives on Class A ordinary shares or other deposited securities underlying our ADSs, after deducting its fees and expenses. You will receive these distributions in proportion to the number of Class A ordinary shares your ADSs represent. However, the depositary is not responsible if it decides that it is unlawful or impractical to make a distribution available to any holders of ADSs. For example, it would be unlawful to make a distribution to a holder of ADSs if it consists of securities that require registration under the Securities Act but that are not properly registered or distributed under an applicable exemption from registration. The depositary may also determine that it is not feasible to distribute certain property through the mail. Additionally, the value of certain distributions may be less than the cost of mailing them. In these cases, the depositary may determine not to distribute such property. We have no obligation to register under U.S. securities laws any ADSs, ordinary shares, rights or other securities received through such distributions. We also have no obligation to take any other action to permit the distribution of ADSs, ordinary shares, rights or anything else to holders of ADSs. This means that you may not receive distributions we make on our Class A ordinary shares or any value for them if it is illegal or impractical for us to make them available to you. These restrictions may cause a material decline in the value of our ADSs.

You may experience dilution of your holdings due to inability to participate in rights offerings.

We may, from time to time, distribute rights to our shareholders, including rights to acquire securities. Under the deposit agreement, the depositary will not distribute rights to holders of ADSs unless the distribution and sale of rights and the securities to which these rights relate are either exempt from registration under the Securities Act with respect to all holders of ADSs or are registered under the provisions of the Securities Act. The depositary may, but is not required to, attempt to sell these undistributed rights to third parties, and may allow the rights to lapse. We may be unable to establish an exemption from registration under the Securities Act, and we are under no obligation to file a registration statement with respect to these rights or underlying securities or to endeavor to have a registration statement declared effective. Accordingly, holders of ADSs may be unable to participate in our rights offerings and may experience dilution of their holdings as a result.

You may be subject to limitations on transfer of your ADSs.

Your ADSs are transferable on the books of the depositary. However, the depositary may close its books at any time or from time to time when it deems expedient in connection with the performance of its duties. The depositary may close its books from time to time for a number of reasons, including in connection with corporate events such as a rights offering, during which time the depositary needs to maintain an exact number of ADS holders on its books for a specified period. The depositary may also close its books in emergencies, and on weekends and public holidays. The depositary may refuse to deliver, transfer or register transfers of our ADSs

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generally when our share register or the books of the depositary are closed, or at any time if we or the depositary thinks it is advisable to do so because of any requirement of law or of any government or governmental body, or under any provision of the deposit agreement, or for any other reason.

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SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This prospectus contains forward-looking statements that reflect our current expectations and views of future events. The forward looking statements are contained principally in the sections entitled “Prospectus Summary,” “Risk Factors,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and “Business.” Known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, including those listed under “Risk Factors,” may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.

You can identify some of these forward-looking statements by words or phrases such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “aim,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “is/are likely to,” “potential,” “continue” or other similar expressions. We have based these forward-looking statements largely on our current expectations and projections about future events that we believe may affect our financial condition, results of operations, business strategy and financial needs. These forward-looking statements include statements relating to:

• our goals and strategies;

• our future business development, financial condition and results of operations;

• the expected growth of the AI technology and education industries in China;

• our expectations regarding demand for and market acceptance of our products and services;

• our expectations regarding our relationships with users, content providers, third-party service providers and other stakeholders;

• competition in our industry; and

• relevant government policies and regulations relating to our industry.

These forward-looking statements involve various risks and uncertainties. Although we believe that our expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, our expectations may later be found to be incorrect. Our actual results could be materially different from our expectations. Important risks and factors that could cause our actual results to be materially different from our expectations are generally set forth in “Prospectus Summary—Our Challenges,” “Risk Factors,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” “Business,” “Regulation” and other sections in this prospectus. You should read thoroughly this prospectus and the documents that we refer to with the understanding that our actual future results may be materially different from and worse than what we expect. We qualify all of our forward-looking statements by these cautionary statements.

This prospectus contains certain data and information that we obtained from various government and private publications. Statistical data in these publications also include projections based on a number of assumptions. The AI technology and education industries may not grow at the rate projected by market data, or at all. Failure of this market to grow at the projected rate may have a material and adverse effect on our business and the market price of our ADSs. In addition, the rapidly evolving nature of the AI technology and education industries results in significant uncertainties for any projections or estimates relating to the growth prospects or future condition of our market. Furthermore, if any one or more of the assumptions underlying the market data are later found to be incorrect, actual results may differ from the projections based on these assumptions. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.

The forward-looking statements made in this prospectus relate only to events or information as of the date on which the statements are made in this prospectus. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date on which the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. You should read this prospectus and the documents that we refer to in this prospectus and have filed as exhibits to the registration statement, of which this prospectus is a part, completely and with the understanding that our actual future results may be materially different from what we expect.

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USE OF PROCEEDS

We estimate that we will receive net proceeds from this offering of approximately US$                  , or approximately US$                  if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and the estimated offering expenses payable by us. These estimates are based upon an assumed initial public offering price of US$                  per ADS, the mid-point of the price range shown on the front cover page of this prospectus. A US$1.00 increase (decrease) in the assumed initial public offering price of US$                  per ADS would increase (decrease) the net proceeds to us from this offering by US$                  , assuming no change to the number of ADSs offered by us as set forth on the cover page of this prospectus, and after deducting the estimated underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated expenses payable by us.

The primary purposes of this offering are to create a public market for our shares for the benefit of all shareholders, retain talented employees by providing them with equity incentives, and obtain additional capital. We plan to use the net proceeds of this offering as follows:

• approximately US$                  for research and development, to continue to invest in and develop our technologies, particularly artificial intelligence and big data capabilities.

• approximately US$                 for selling and marketing, including marketing and promotional activities to acquire users and strengthen our brand; and

• the balance for general corporate purposes, which may include working capital needs and potential strategic acquisitions, investments and alliances.

The foregoing represents our current intentions based upon our present plans and business conditions to use and allocate the net proceeds of this offering. Our management, however, will have significant flexibility and discretion to apply the net proceeds of this offering. If an unforeseen event occurs or business conditions change, we may use the proceeds of this offering differently than as described in this prospectus. See “Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Our ADSs and This Offering—We have not determined a specific use for a portion of the net proceeds from this offering, and we may use these proceeds in ways with which you may not agree.”

Pending any use described above, we plan to invest the net proceeds in short-term, interest-bearing, debt instruments.

In using the proceeds of this offering, we are permitted under PRC laws and regulations as an offshore holding company to provide funding to our PRC subsidiaries through loans or additional capital contributions and to our VIEs only through loans, subject to satisfaction of applicable government registration and approval requirements. Currently, there is no statutory limit to the amount of funding that we can provide to our PRC subsidiaries through capital contributions. However, the maximum amount we can loan to our PRC subsidiaries and VIEs is subject to statutory limits. According to current PRC laws and regulations, we can provide funding to our PRC subsidiaries through loans of up to either (i) the amount of the difference between the respective registered total investment amount and registered capital of each of our PRC subsidiaries, or the Total Investment and Registered Capital Balance, or (ii) two times, or the then applicable statutory multiple, the amount of their respective net assets, calculated in accordance with PRC GAAP, or the Net Assets Limit, at our election. We may also fund our VIEs through cross-border loans and the maximum amount would be their respective Net Assets Limit. Increasing the Total Investment and Registered Capital Balance of our PRC subsidiaries is subject to governmental procedures and may require a PRC subsidiary to increase its registered capital at the same time. If we choose to make a loan to a PRC entity based on its Net Assets Limit, the maximum amount we would be able to loan to the relevant PRC entity would depend on the relevant entity’s net assets and the applicable statutory multiple at the time of calculation. As of the date of this prospectus, the maximum amount we may loan to our PRC subsidiaries and VIEs in aggregate is US$60 million, as only Yuguan has a positive Total Investment and Registered Capital Balance of US$60 million, and all of our PRC subsidiaries and VIEs have negative or very

57

limited net assets, which prevents us from providing loans to them using the Net Assets Limit. PRC laws and regulations may also impose more stringent limitations to cross-border loans, which will also have negative impact on our ability to fund our PRC entities. We cannot assure you that we will be able to obtain these government registrations or approvals on a timely basis, if at all. See “Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Our Corporate Structure—PRC regulation of loans to and direct investment in, PRC entities by offshore companies and governmental control of currency conversion may delay or prevent us from using the proceeds of our offshore offerings to make loans to or make additional capital contribution to our PRC subsidiaries, which could materially and adversely affect our liquidity and our ability to fund and expand our business.”

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DIVIDEND POLICY

Our board of directors has complete discretion on whether to distribute dividends, subject to certain requirements of Cayman Islands law, namely that our company may only pay dividends out of profits or share premium, and provided always that in no circumstances may a dividend be paid if this would result in our company being unable to pay its debts as they fall due in the ordinary course of business. In addition, our shareholders may by ordinary resolution declare a dividend, but no dividend may exceed the amount recommended by our board of directors. Even if our board of directors decides to pay dividends on our ordinary shares, the form, frequency and amount will depend upon our future operations and earnings, capital requirements and surplus, general financial condition, contractual restrictions and other factors our board of directors may deem relevant.

We do not have any present plan to pay any cash dividends on our ordinary shares in the foreseeable future after this offering. We currently intend to retain most, if not all, of our available funds and any future earnings to operate and expand our business.

We are a holding company incorporated in the Cayman Islands. We may rely on dividends from our subsidiaries in China for our cash requirements, including any payment of dividends to our shareholders. PRC regulations may restrict the ability of our PRC subsidiaries to pay dividends to us. See “Regulation—Regulations Related to Dividend Distributions.”

If we pay any dividends on our ordinary shares, we will pay those dividends which are payable in respect of the Class A ordinary shares underlying our ADSs to the depositary, as the registered holder of such Class A ordinary shares, and the depositary then will pay such amounts to our ADS holders in proportion to Class A ordinary shares underlying the ADSs held by such ADS holders, subject to the terms of the deposit agreement, including the fees and expenses payable thereunder. See “Description of American Depositary Shares.” Cash dividends on our ordinary shares, if any, will be paid in U.S. dollars.

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CAPITALIZATION

The following table sets forth our capitalization as of June 30, 2018:

• on an actual basis;

• on a pro forma basis to reflect the automatic conversion of all of our issued and outstanding preferred shares into Class A ordinary shares on a one-for-one basis immediately upon the completion of this offering; and

• on a pro forma as adjusted basis to reflect (i) the automatic conversion of all of our issued and outstanding preferred shares into Class A ordinary shares on a one-for-one basis immediately upon the completion of this offering and (ii) the sale of          Class A ordinary shares in the form of ADSs by us in this offering at an assumed initial public offering price of US$          per ADS, the mid-point of the estimated range of the initial public offering price shown on the front cover of this prospectus, after deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us, assuming the underwriters do not exercise the over-allotment option.

Unaudited pro forma basic and diluted net income per ordinary share reflects the effect of the conversion of preferred shares as follows, as if the conversion occurred as of the beginning of the period or the original date of issuance, if later.

You should read this table together with our consolidated financial statements and the related notes included elsewhere in this prospectus and the information under “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.”

	As of June 30, 2018
	Actual				Pro Forma				Pro Forma As Adjusted(1)
	(in thousands)
	RMB		US$		RMB		US$		RMB	US$
Mezzanine equity:
Series Seed convertible redeemable preferred shares (US$0.001 par value; 3,645,501 shares authorized, issued and outstanding; none outstanding on a pro-forma basis; redemption amount of RMB11,644,222)		28,338		4,282		—		—
Series A convertible redeemable preferred shares (US$0.001 par value; 5,531,104 shares authorized, issued and outstanding; none outstanding on a pro-forma basis; redemption amount of RMB80,040,266)		74,563		11,268		—		—
Series B convertible redeemable preferred shares (US$0.001 par value; 7,895,711 shares authorized, issued and outstanding; none outstanding on a pro-forma basis; redemption amount of RMB210,262,834)		207,732		31,393		—		—
Series C convertible redeemable preferred shares (US$0.001 par value; 5,295,380 shares authorized, issued and outstanding; none outstanding on a pro-forma basis; redemption amount of RMB361,480,071)		359,810		54,377		—		—
Total mezzanine equity		670,443		101,320
Shareholders’ (deficit)/equity:
Class A ordinary shares (US$0.001 par value; 57,956,630 shares authorized, 158,861 shares issued and outstanding; 22,526,557 shares issued and outstanding on a pro-forma basis)		1		0		142		21

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	As of June 30, 2018
	Actual						Pro Forma						Pro Forma As Adjusted(1)
	(in thousands)
	RMB			US$			RMB			US$			RMB	US$
Class B ordinary shares (US$0.001 par value; 19,675,674 shares authorized, issued and outstanding; 19,675,674 shares issued and outstanding on a pro-forma basis)		121			18			121			18
Subscription Receivable		(122	)		(18	)		(122	)		(18	)
Additional paid-in capital		2,025			306			672,327			101,605
Accumulated other comprehensive loss		2,511			379			2,511			379
Accumulated deficit		(631,063	)		(95,369	)		(631,063	)		(95,369	)
Total shareholders’ (deficit)/equity		(626,527	)		(94,684	)		43,916			6,636
Total liabilities, mezzanine equity and shareholders’ (deficit)/equity		467,368			70,630			467,368			70,630

Note:

(1) The pro forma as adjusted information discussed above is illustrative only. Our additional paid-in capital, total shareholders’ equity and total capitalization following the completion of this offering are subject to adjustment based on the actual initial public offering price and other terms of this offering determined at pricing.

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DILUTION

If you invest in our ADSs, your interest will be diluted to the extent of the difference between the initial public offering price per ADS and our net tangible book value per ADS after this offering. Dilution results from the fact that the initial public offering price per ordinary share is substantially in excess of the book value per ordinary share attributable to the existing shareholders for our presently outstanding ordinary shares.

Our net tangible book value as of June 30, 2018 was approximately US$                  , or US$                  per Class A ordinary share as of that date and US$                  per ADS. Net tangible book value represents the amount of our total consolidated tangible assets, less the amount of our total consolidated liabilities. Dilution is determined by subtracting net tangible book value per ordinary share, after giving effect to the additional proceeds we will receive from this offering, from the assumed initial public offering price of US$                  per Class A ordinary share, which is the midpoint of the estimated initial public offering price range set forth on the cover page of this prospectus adjusted to reflect the ADS-to-ordinary share ratio, and after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us.

Without taking into account any other changes in net tangible book value after June 30, 2018, other than to give effect to our sale of the ADSs offered in this offering at the assumed initial public offering price of US$                  per ADS, the midpoint of the estimated range of the initial public offering price, after deduction of the underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us, our pro forma as adjusted net tangible book value as of June 30, 2018 would have been US$                  , or US$                  per ordinary share and US$                  per ADS. This represents an immediate increase in net tangible book value of US$                  per ordinary share and US$                  per ADS to the existing shareholders and an immediate dilution in net tangible book value of US$                  per Class A ordinary share and US$                  per ADS to investors purchasing ADSs in this offering. The following table illustrates such dilution:

	Per Ordinary Share	Per ADS
Assumed initial public offering price	US$	US$
Net tangible book value as of June 30, 2018	US$	US$
Pro forma net tangible book value after giving effect to the conversion of our preferred shares	US$	US$
Pro forma as adjusted net tangible book value after giving effect to the conversion of our preferred shares and this offering	US$	US$
Amount of dilution in net tangible book value to new investors in this offering	US$	US$

A US$1.00 increase (decrease) in the assumed public offering price of US$                  per ADS would increase (decrease) our pro forma as adjusted net tangible book value after giving effect to this offering by US$                  , the pro forma as adjusted net tangible book value per ordinary share and per ADS after giving effect to this offering by US$                  per Class A ordinary share and US$                  per ADS and the dilution in pro forma as adjusted net tangible book value per ordinary share and per ADS to new investors in this offering by US$                  per Class A ordinary share and US$                  per ADS, assuming no change to the number of ADSs offered by us as set forth on the cover page of this prospectus, and after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses.

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The following table summarizes, on a pro forma as adjusted basis as of June 30, 2018, the differences between existing shareholders and the new investors with respect to the number of ordinary shares (in the form of ADSs or shares) purchased from us, the total consideration paid and the average price per ordinary share and per ADS paid before deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses. The total number of ordinary shares does not include Class A ordinary shares underlying the ADSs issuable upon the exercise of the over-allotment option granted to the underwriters.

	Ordinary Shares Purchased				Total Consideration				Average Price Per Ordinary Share	Average Price Per ADS
	Number	Percent			Amount	Percent
Existing shareholders				%	US$			%	US$	US$
New investors				%	US$			%	US$	US$
Total			100.0	%	US$		100.0	%

The pro forma as adjusted information discussed above is illustrative only. Our net tangible book value following the completion of this offering is subject to adjustment based on the actual initial public offering price of our ADSs and other terms of this offering determined at pricing.

The discussion and tables above assume no exercise of any outstanding share options outstanding as of the date of this prospectus. As of the date of this prospectus, there are 4,914,974 Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of outstanding share options at a nominal exercise price. To the extent that any of these options are exercised, there will be further dilution to new investors.

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EXCHANGE RATE INFORMATION

Our reporting currency is the Renminbi because our business is mainly conducted in China and all of our revenues are denominated in Renminbi. This prospectus contains translations of Renminbi amounts into U.S. dollars at specific rates solely for the convenience of the reader. The conversion of Renminbi into U.S. dollars in this prospectus is based on the exchange rate set forth in the H.10 statistical release of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Unless otherwise noted, all translations from Renminbi to U.S. dollars and from U.S. dollars to Renminbi in this prospectus were made at the end of the applicable period, that is, RMB6.5063 to US$1.00, the noon buying rate on December 29, 2017, or RMB6.6171 to US$1.00, the noon buying rate on June 29, 2018, in each case as set forth in the H.10 statistical release of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. We make no representation that any Renminbi or U.S. dollar amounts could have been, or could be, converted into U.S. dollars or Renminbi, as the case may be, at any particular rate, the rates stated below, or at all. The PRC government imposes control over its foreign currency reserves in part through direct regulation of the conversion of Renminbi into foreign exchange and through restrictions on foreign trade. On August 24, 2018, the noon buying rate for Renminbi was RMB6.8030 to US$1.00.

The following table sets forth information concerning exchange rates between the Renminbi and the U.S. dollar for the periods indicated. These rates are provided solely for your convenience and are not necessarily the exchange rates that we used in this prospectus or will use in the preparation of our periodic reports or any other information to be provided to you.

	Certified Exchange Rate
Period	Period End		Average(1)		Low		High
	(RMB per US$1.00)
2013		6.0537		6.1412		6.2438		6.0537
2014		6.2046		6.1704		6.2591		6.0402
2015		6.4778		6.2869		6.4896		6.1870
2016		6.9430		6.6549		6.9580		6.4480
2017		6.5063		6.7350		6.9575		6.4773
2018
February		6.3280		6.3183		6.3471		6.2649
March		6.2726		6.3174		6.3565		6.2685
April		6.3325		6.2967		6.3340		6.2655
May		6.4096		6.3701		6.4175		6.3325
June		6.6171		6.4651		6.6235		6.3850
July		6.8038		6.7164		6.8102		6.6123
August (through August 24)		6.8030		6.8519		6.9330		6.8030

Source: Federal Reserve Statistical Release

Note:

(1) Annual averages were calculated by using the average of the exchange rates on the last day of each month during the relevant year. Monthly averages are calculated by using the average of the daily rates during the relevant month.

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ENFORCEABILITY OF CIVIL LIABILITIES

We are incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands as an exempted company with limited liability. We are incorporated in the Cayman Islands because of certain benefits associated with being a Cayman Islands exempted company, such as political and economic stability, an effective judicial system, a favorable tax system, the absence of foreign exchange control or currency restrictions and the availability of professional and support services. However, the Cayman Islands has a less developed body of securities laws than the United States and provides less protection for investors. In addition, Cayman Islands companies do not have standing to sue before the federal courts of the United States.

Most of our assets are located outside the United States. In addition, all of our directors and officers are nationals or residents of jurisdictions other than the United States and all or a substantial portion of their assets are located outside the United States. As a result, it may be difficult for investors to effect service of process within the United States upon us or these persons, or to enforce judgments obtained in U.S. courts against us or them, including judgments predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the securities laws of the United States or any state in the United States. It may also be difficult for you to enforce judgments obtained in U.S. courts based on the civil liability provisions of the U.S. federal securities laws against us and our officers and directors.

We have appointed Puglisi & Associates, located at 850 Library Avenue, Suite 204, Newark, Delaware 19711, as our agent to receive service of process with respect to any action brought against us in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in connection with this offering under the federal securities laws of the United States or the securities laws of any State in the United States or any action brought against us in the Supreme Court of the State of New York in the County of New York in connection with this offering under the securities laws of the State of New York.

Maples and Calder (Hong Kong) LLP, our counsel as to Cayman Islands law, has advised us that there is uncertainty as to whether the courts of the Cayman Islands would (1) recognize or enforce judgments of U.S. courts obtained against us or our directors or officers that are predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the federal securities laws of the United States or the securities laws of any state in the United States, or (2) entertain original actions brought in the Cayman Islands against us or our directors or officers that are predicated upon the federal securities laws of the United States or the securities laws of any state in the United States.

Maples and Calder (Hong Kong) LLP has informed us that although there is no statutory enforcement in the Cayman Islands of judgments obtained in the federal or state courts of the United States (and the Cayman Islands are not a party to any treaties for the reciprocal enforcement or recognition of such judgments), the courts of the Cayman Islands will, at common law, recognize and enforce a foreign money judgment of a foreign court of competent jurisdiction without any re-examination of the merits of the underlying dispute based on the principle that a judgment of a competent foreign court imposes upon the judgment debtor an obligation to pay the liquidated sum for which such judgment has been given, provided such judgment (i) is final and conclusive, (ii) is not in respect of taxes, a fine or a penalty; and (iii) was not obtained in a manner and is not of a kind the enforcement of which is contrary to natural justice or the public policy of the Cayman Islands. However, the Cayman Islands courts are unlikely to enforce a judgment obtained from the U.S. courts under civil liability provisions of the U.S. federal securities law if such judgment is determined by the courts of the Cayman Islands to give rise to obligations to make payments that are penal or punitive in nature. A Cayman Islands court may stay enforcement proceedings if concurrent proceedings are being brought elsewhere.

Fangda Partners, our counsel as to PRC law, has advised us that there is uncertainty as to whether the courts of China would (1) recognize or enforce judgments of United States courts obtained against us or our directors or officers predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the securities laws of the United States or any state in the United States, or (2) entertain original actions brought in each respective jurisdiction against us or our directors or officers predicated upon the securities laws of the United States or any state in the United States.

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Fangda Partners has further advised us that the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments are provided for under the PRC Civil Procedures Law. PRC courts may recognize and enforce foreign judgments in accordance with the requirements of the PRC Civil Procedures Law based either on treaties between China and the country where the judgment is made or on principles of reciprocity between jurisdictions. There exists no treaty and few other forms of reciprocity between China and the United States or the Cayman Islands governing the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments as of the date of this prospectus. In addition, according to the PRC Civil Procedures Law, courts in China will not enforce a foreign judgment against us or our directors and officers if they decide that the judgment violates the basic principles of PRC law or national sovereignty, security or public interest. As a result, it is uncertain whether and on what basis a PRC court would enforce a judgment rendered by a court in the United States or in the Cayman Islands. Under the PRC Civil Procedures Law, foreign shareholders may originate actions based on PRC law before a PRC court against a company for disputes relating to contracts or other property interests, the PRC court may accept a course of action based on the laws or the parties’ express mutual agreement in contracts choosing PRC courts for dispute resolution if (i) the contract is signed and/or performed within China, (ii) the subject of the action is located within China, (iii) the company (as defendant) has seizable properties within China, (iv) the company has a representative organization within China, or (v) other circumstances prescribed under the PRC law. The action may be initiated by a shareholder through filing a complaint with the PRC court. The PRC court will determine whether to accept the complaint in accordance with the PRC Civil Procedures Law. The shareholder may participate in the action by itself or entrust any other person or PRC legal counsel to participate on behalf of such shareholder. Foreign citizens and companies will have the same rights as PRC citizens and companies in an action unless the home jurisdiction of such foreign citizens or companies restricts the rights of PRC citizens and companies.

In addition, it will be difficult for U.S. shareholders to originate actions against us in China in accordance with PRC laws because we are incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands and it will be difficult for U.S. shareholders, by virtue only of holding our ADSs or ordinary shares, to establish a connection to China for a PRC court to have jurisdiction as required under the PRC Civil Procedures Law.

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CORPORATE HISTORY AND STRUCTURE

We commenced our operations and launched our flagship “English Liulishuo” mobile app in 2013. Our three founders are Dr. Yi Wang, Mr. Zheren Hu and Dr. Hui Lin.

In August 2013, we incorporated LAIX Inc. (formerly known as LingoChamp Inc.) under the laws of the Cayman Islands as our offshore holding company. In the same month, LAIX Inc. established a wholly-owned Hong Kong subsidiary, LingoChamp (HK) Limited, or LingoChamp HK. In November 2013, LingoChamp HK established a wholly-owned PRC subsidiary, Yuguan Information Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., which we refer to as Yuguan or our WFOE in this prospectus. In October 2015, LingoChamp HK also established a wholly-owned PRC subsidiary, Yuling Cultural Communication (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., or Yuling. In August 2017, LAIX Inc. established a wholly-owned Delaware subsidiary, LingoChamp US, Inc., to operate our Silicon Valley AI Lab.

Due to restrictions imposed by PRC laws and regulations on foreign ownership of companies that engage in internet and other related business, we conduct such business in China through a variable interest entity structure. We currently conduct substantially all of our operations in China through Shanghai Liulishuo Information and Technology Co., Ltd., or Shanghai Liulishuo. We intend to further expand operations in China through Shanghai Mengfan Cultural Communication Co., Ltd., or Shanghai Mengfan, and Jiangsu Liulishuo Education Technology Co., Ltd., or Jiangsu Liulishuo, and have established variable interest entity contractual arrangements with these two entities. We collectively refer to Shanghai Liulishuo, Shanghai Mengfan and Jiangsu Liulishuo as our VIEs in this prospectus. Shanghai Liulishuo was established in 2013 when we commenced our operations, Shanghai Mengfan was established in December 2014, and Jiangsu Liulishuo was established in January 2018. Our WFOE has entered into variable interest entity contractual arrangements with each of our VIEs and their respective shareholders. For more details, please see “—Contractual Arrangements with Our VIEs and Their Respective Shareholders.” As a result of our direct ownership in our WFOE and the variable interest entity contractual arrangements, we are regarded as the primary beneficiary of our VIEs. We treat them and their subsidiaries as our variable interest entities under U.S. GAAP., and have consolidated the financial results of these entities in our consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

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The following diagram illustrates our corporate structure, including our principal subsidiaries and our VIEs, as of the date of this prospectus:

Notes:

(1) Represents the 11,753,847 Class B ordinary shares beneficially owned by Dr. Yi Wang, one of our founders, as of the date of this prospectus, each of which will be entitled to ten votes upon the completion of this offering on all matters submitted to the shareholders for a vote. Dr. Yi Wang will be able to exercise approximately     % of the aggregate voting power of our issued and outstanding share capital immediately after the completion of this offering, assuming the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option. Please refer to the beneficial ownership table in the section headed “Principal Shareholders” for more information on beneficial ownership of Dr. Yi Wang in our company prior to and immediately after this offering.

(2) Represents the 5,010,931 Class B ordinary shares beneficially owned by Mr. Zheren Hu, one of our founders, as of the date of this prospectus, each of which will be entitled to ten votes upon the completion of this offering on all matters submitted to the shareholders for a vote. Mr. Zheren Hu will be able to exercise approximately     % of the aggregate voting power of our issued and outstanding share capital immediately after the completion of this offering, assuming the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option. Please refer to the beneficial ownership table in the section headed “Principal Shareholders” for more information on beneficial ownership of Mr. Zheren Hu in our company prior to and immediately after this offering.

(3) Represents the 2,910,896 Class B ordinary shares beneficially owned by Dr. Hui Lin, one of our founders, as of the date of this prospectus, each of which will be entitled to ten votes upon the completion of this offering on all matters submitted to the shareholders for a vote. Dr. Hui Lin will be able to exercise approximately     % of the aggregate voting power of our issued and outstanding share capital immediately after the completion of this offering, assuming the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option. Please refer to the beneficial ownership table in the section headed “Principal Shareholders” for more information on beneficial ownership of Dr. Hui Lin in our company prior to and immediately after this offering.

(4) Dr. Yi Wang, Mr. Zheren Hu, Dr. Hui Lin, Zhuhai Xinran Consulting and Management Co., Ltd., Ningbo Meishan Bonded Port Zhimei Fifth Equity Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership), Jiwei Enterprise Management and Consulting (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Mr. Gu Jiong, and two other shareholders hold 37.32%, 10.51%, 6.11%, 11.88%, 11.88%, 10.38%, 5.56% and 6.36% equity interests in Shanghai Liulishuo, respectively. Among them, Dr. Yi Wang, Mr. Zheren Hu, Dr. Hui Lin are beneficial owners, directors and officers of our company; Zhuhai Xinran Consulting and Management Co., Ltd. is an affiliate of the IDG entities that are beneficial owners of our company; Ningbo Meishan Bonded Port Zhimei Fifth Equity Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership) is an affiliate of Trustbridge Partners V, L.P., a beneficial owner of our company; Jiwei Enterprise Management and Consulting (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. is an affiliate of the GGV entities that are beneficial owners of our company; Mr. Gu Jiong is an affiliated person of CMC Lullaby Holdings Limited, a beneficial owner of our company; and the other two shareholders are affiliates of certain beneficial owners of our company. Each of Shanghai Mengfan and Jiangsu Liulishuo has the same shareholding structure as Shanghai Liulishuo.

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Contractual Arrangements with our VIEs and Their Respective Shareholders

The following is a summary of the currently effective contractual arrangements by and among our wholly-owned subsidiary, Yuguan (our WFOE), our VIEs and their respective shareholders. Terms contained in each set of contractual arrangements with our VIEs and their respective shareholders are substantially similar. These contractual arrangements enable us to (i) exercise effective control over our VIEs; (ii) receive substantially all of the economic benefits of our VIEs; and (iii) have an exclusive call option to purchase all or part of the equity interests in and assets of our VIEs when and to the extent permitted by PRC law.

Arrangements that provide us effective control over our VIEs

Proxy Agreements. Pursuant to the proxy agreements among Yuguan, our VIEs and their respective shareholders, each shareholder of our VIEs irrevocably undertakes to appoint a PRC citizen designated by Yuguan as his/its attorney-in-fact to exercise all of his/its rights as a shareholder of our VIEs, including, but not limited to, the right to convene and attend shareholders’ meeting, vote on any resolution that requires a shareholder vote, such as appoint or remove directors and other senior management, other voting rights pursuant to the then-effective articles of association (subject to the amendments) of our VIEs, and execute relevant equity transfer agreements and other instruments and obtain necessary governmental approval, registration or filing on behalf of the shareholders when the equity interests held by such shareholders are transferred pursuant to the exclusive call option agreements. Each proxy agreement has an initial term of 30 years and shall be automatically renewed unless otherwise notified by our WFOE.

Equity Pledge Agreements. Pursuant to the equity pledge agreements among Yuguan, our VIEs and their respective shareholders, shareholders of our VIEs shall pledge all of their respective equity interests in our VIEs to Yuguan to guarantee their and our VIEs’ performance of their and our VIEs’ obligations under the exclusive technology service agreements, the proxy agreements, the exclusive call option agreements and the equity pledge agreements. As of the date of this prospectus, we have registered the equity pledges for Shanghai Liulishuo and Shanghai Mengfan with the local branch of the SAIC in accordance with PRC laws to perfect their respective equity pledges, and are still in the process of completing such registration for Jiangsu Liulishuo. After the completion of the equity pledge registrations, in the event of a breach by our VIEs or their shareholders of contractual obligations under these agreements, Yuguan, as pledgee, will have the right to dispose of the pledged equity interests in our VIEs. The shareholders of our VIEs also undertake that, during the term of the equity pledge agreement, unless otherwise approved by Yuguan in writing, they will not transfer the pledged equity interests or create or allow any new pledge or other encumbrance on the pledged equity interests.

Spousal Consent Letters. Pursuant to the spousal consent letters, each of the spouses of the individual shareholders of our VIEs unconditionally and irrevocably agrees that the equity interest in our VIEs held by and registered in the name of her respective spouse will be disposed of pursuant to the relevant equity pledge agreement, the exclusive call option agreement and the proxy agreement, without her consent. In addition, each of them agrees not to assert any rights over the equity interest in our VIEs held by her respective spouse. In addition, in the event that any of them obtains any equity interest in our VIEs held by her respective spouse for any reason, such spouse agrees to be bound by similar obligations and agreed to enter into similar contractual arrangements.

Agreements that allow us to receive economic benefits from our VIEs

Exclusive Technology Service Agreements. Pursuant to the exclusive technology service agreements between Yuguan and our VIEs, respectively, Yuguan has the exclusive right to provide to our VIEs services related to, among other things, technology, internet support, operation consulting, intellectual property licensing and product development. Yuguan has the exclusive ownership of intellectual property rights created as a result of the performance of this agreement. Each of our VIEs agrees to pay Yuguan a service fee every year, at an amount reasonably determined by Yuguan considering relevant VIE’s revenue and other circumstances. This

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agreement will remain effective for an initial 30-year term and will be renewed automatically except that Yuguan is entitled to terminate the agreement upon the expiration of such 30-year term as long as a 30-day prior written termination notice is provided to our VIEs.

Agreements that provide us with the option to purchase the equity interests in our VIEs

Exclusive Call Option Agreements. Pursuant to the exclusive call option agreements among Yuguan, our VIEs and their respective shareholders, the shareholders of our VIEs irrevocably grant Yuguan an exclusive option to purchase, or have its designated person to purchase, at its discretion, to the extent permitted under PRC law, all or part of their equity interests and/or assets in our VIEs, and the purchase price shall be the higher of capital contribution amount for their equity interests or net book value of such assets, as the case may be, or the lowest price permitted by applicable PRC law. The shareholders further undertake to pay to Yuguan any purchase price or other distributions they receive in relation to the equity interests they held in the VIEs, to the extent permitted by PRC law. The shareholders of our VIEs undertake that, without prior written consent of Yuguan, they will not create any pledge or encumbrance on their equity interests in our VIEs, approve any transfer or in any manner disposal of their equity interests, dispose of or cause our company management to dispose of any material assets (other than those occurring in the ordinary course of business). The shareholders of each of our VIEs agree, among other things, without prior written consent of Yuguan, not to cause the relevant VIE to merge with any other entities, increase or decrease its registered capital, declare or distribute dividends, amend its articles of association, terminate any material contract or enter into any other contract which is in conflict with any existing material contract, appoint or remove its directors, supervisors or other management, be terminated, liquidated or dissolved, lend or borrow money or provide guarantee, or undertake any substantial obligation other than those occurred during the ordinary course of business. This agreement will remain effective till all of the equity interests and other assets of the relevant VIE have been transferred to Yuguan and/or its designated person.

In the opinions of Fangda Partners, our PRC legal counsel:

• the ownership structures of Yuguan and our VIEs, both currently and immediately after giving effect to this offering, do not and will not violate applicable PRC laws or regulations currently in effect; and

• the contractual arrangements among Yuguan, our VIEs and their respective shareholders governed by PRC law, both currently and immediately after giving effect to this offering, are and will be valid and binding, and do not and will not violate applicable PRC laws or regulations currently in effect, except that the pledges on the equity interests in our VIEs would not be deemed validly created until they are registered with the competent administration of industry and commerce.

However, we have been further advised by our PRC legal counsel that there are substantial uncertainties regarding the interpretation and application of current and future PRC laws, regulations and rules. Accordingly, the PRC regulatory authorities may in the future take a view that is contrary to or otherwise different from the above opinions of our PRC legal counsel. If the PRC government finds that the agreements that establish the structure for operating our education business do not comply with PRC government restrictions on foreign investment in our businesses, we could be subject to severe penalties including being prohibited from continuing operations. See “Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Our Corporate Structure—We rely on contractual arrangements with our VIEs and their shareholders to exercise control over a significant part of our business, which may not be as effective as direct ownership in providing operational control.” and “Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Doing Business in China—Our failure to obtain, maintain or renew other licenses, approvals, permits, registrations or filings necessary to conduct our operations in China could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial conditions and results of operations.”

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SELECTED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL DATA

The following selected consolidated comprehensive loss data for the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2017, selected consolidated balance sheet data as of December 31, 2016 and 2017 and selected cash flow data for the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2017 have been derived from our audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this prospectus. The following selected consolidated comprehensive loss data for the six months ended June 30, 2017 and 2018, selected consolidated balance sheet data as of June 30, 2018, and selected consolidated cash flow data for the six months ended June 30, 2017 and 2018 have been derived from our unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this prospectus and have been prepared on the same basis as our audited consolidated financial statements and include all adjustments, consisting only of normal and recurring adjustments, that we consider necessary for a fair statement of our financial position and operating results for the periods presented. Our consolidated financial statements are prepared and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Our historical results are not necessarily indicative of results expected for future periods. You should read this Selected Consolidated Financial Data section together with our consolidated financial statements and the related notes and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” included elsewhere in this prospectus.

	Year Ended December 31,									Six Months Ended June 30,
	2016			2017						2017			2018
	RMB			RMB			US$			RMB			RMB			US$
	(in thousands, except for share and per share data)
Summary Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Loss
Net revenues		12,332			165,561			25,446			40,061			232,308			35,107
Cost of revenues(1)		(27,503	)		(57,691	)		(8,867	)		(22,110	)		(55,007	)		(8,313	)
Gross (loss)/profit		(15,171	)		107,870			16,579			17,951			177,301			26,794
Operating expenses:
Sales and marketing expenses(1)		(28,534	)		(283,055	)		(43,505	)		(62,935	)		(259,849	)		(39,269	)
Research and development expenses(1)		(30,013	)		(53,162	)		(8,171	)		(19,648	)		(60,941	)		(9,210	)
General and administrative expenses(1)		(8,754	)		(19,807	)		(3,044	)		(6,958	)		(26,291	)		(3,973	)
Total operating expenses		(67,301	)		(356,024	)		(54,720	)		(89,541	)		(347,081	)		(52,452	)
Loss from operations		(82,472	)		(248,154	)		(38,141	)		(71,590	)		(169,780	)		(25,658	)
Other income/(expenses):
Interest income		2,671			934			144			509			1,406			213
Foreign exchange related (losses)/gains, net		(9,839	)		7,145			1,098			3,658			(828	)		(125	)
Change in fair value of short-term investment		59			750			115			—			—			—
Other income/(expenses), net		412			2,172			334			1,469			(604	)		(92	)
Net loss before tax		(89,169	)		(237,153	)		(36,450	)		(65,954	)		(169,806	)		(25,662	)
Income tax expense		—			(5,606	)		(862	)		(1,315	)		(12,456	)		(1,882	)
Net loss		(89,169	)		(242,759	)		(37,312	)		(67,269	)		(182,262	)		(27,544	)
Series A preferred share redemption value accretion		(3,601	)		(3,105	)		(477	)		(1,815	)		(1,313	)		(198	)
Series B preferred share redemption value accretion		(11,548	)		(12,565	)		(1,931	)		(6,077	)		(6,705	)		(1,013	)
Series C preferred share redemption value accretion		—			(11,147	)		(1,713	)		(934	)		(10,520	)		(1,591	)
Net loss attributable to ordinary shareholders		(104,318	)		(269,576	)		(41,433	)		(76,095	)		(200,800	)		(30,346	)
Foreign currency translation adjustment, net of nil tax		12,995			(24,983	)		(3,839	)		(6,173	)		2,596			392
Comprehensive loss		(76,174	)		(267,742	)		(41,151	)		(73,442	)		(179,666	)		(27,152	)
Net loss per ordinary share attributable to ordinary shareholders
—Basic and diluted		(5.28	)		(13.59	)		(2.09	)		(3.85)			(10.12	)		(1.53	)
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in per share calculation
—Basic and diluted		19,770,990			19,834,535			19,834,535			19,775,878			19,834,535			19,834,535

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Note:

(1) Including share-based compensation expenses as follows:

	Year Ended December 31,						Six Months Ended June 30,
	2016		2017				2017		2018
	RMB		RMB		US$		RMB		RMB		US$
	(in thousands)
Cost of revenues		1,257		1,341		206		1,009		588		89
Sales and marketing expenses		839		2,380		366		874		2,182		330
Research and development expenses		2,285		3,799		584		1,718		12,592		1,903
General and administrative expenses		139		997		153		152		4,301		650
Total		4,520		8,517		1,309		3,753		19,663		2,972

The following table presents our selected consolidated balance sheet data as of the dates indicated:

	As of December 31,									As of June 30,
	2016			2017						2018
	RMB			RMB			US$			RMB			US$
	(in thousands)
Selected Consolidated Balance Sheet:
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents		41,301			416,483			64,012			378,372			57,181
Short-term investments		121,336			35,422			5,444			—			—
Accounts receivable, net		—			7,236			1,112			11,434			1,728
Prepayments and other current assets		2,959			21,907			3,367			46,873			7,084
Total current assets		165,596			481,048			73,935			436,679			65,993
Total assets		167,214			494,325			75,976			467,368			70,630
Total current liabilities		44,807			288,499			44,341			421,342			63,675
Total liabilities		46,307			290,407			44,634			423,452			63,994
Total mezzanine equity		286,946			651,904			100,196			670,443			101,320
Total shareholders’ (deficits)/equity		(166,039	)		(447,986	)		(68,854	)		(626,527	)		(94,684	)

The following table presents our selected consolidated cash flow data for the periods indicated:

	Year Ended December 31,									Six Months Ended June 30,
	2016			2017						2017			2018
	RMB			RMB			US$			RMB			RMB			US$
	(in thousands)
Selected Consolidated Cash Flow Data:
Net cash used in operating activities		(38,591	)		(60,120	)		(9,240	)		(9,581	)		(61,949	)		(9,362	)
Net cash used in investing activities		(121,677	)		69,901			10,744			119,128			22,223			3,359
Net cash provided by/(used in) financing activities		—			377,191			57,973			324,623			(798	)		(121	)
Net (decrease)/increase in cash and cash equivalents		(160,268	)		386,972			59,477			434,170			(40,524	)		(6,124	)
Exchange rate effect on cash and cash equivalents		2,312			(11,790	)		(1,813	)		(2,420	)		2,413			365
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the period		199,257			41,301			6,348			41,301			416,483			62,940
Cash and cash equivalents at end of the period		41,301			416,483			64,012			473,051			378,372			57,181

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Non-GAAP Measures

We use adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net loss, each a non-GAAP financial measure, in evaluating our operating results and for financial and operational decision-making purposes.

We believe that adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net loss help identify underlying trends in our business that could otherwise be distorted by the effect of certain expenses that we include in loss from operations and net loss. We believe that adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net loss provide useful information about our results of operations, enhance the overall understanding of our past performance and future prospects and allow for greater visibility with respect to key metrics used by our management in its financial and operational decision-making.

Adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net loss should not be considered in isolation or construed as an alternative to loss from operations, net loss or any other measure of performance or as an indicator of our operating performance. Investors are encouraged to review the historical non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures. Adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net loss presented here may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies. Other companies may calculate similarly titled measures differently, limiting their usefulness as comparative measures to our data. We encourage investors and others to review our financial information in its entirety and not rely on a single financial measure.

Adjusted EBITDA represents net loss excluding share-based compensation expenses, depreciation, amortization, interest income and income tax. The table below sets forth a reconciliation of our net loss to adjusted EBITDA for the periods indicated:

	Year Ended December 31,									Six Months Ended June 30,
	2016			2017						2017			2018
	RMB			RMB			US$			RMB			RMB			US$
	(in thousands)
Net loss		(89,169	)		(242,759	)		(37,312	)		(67,269	)		(182,262	)		(27,544	)
Add:
Share-based compensation expenses		4,520			8,517			1,309			3,753			19,663			2,972
Depreciation of property, plant and equipment		550			1,027			158			381			2,036			308
Amortization of prepaid interest expense and service fees to loan companies		—			269			41			13			1,685			255
Income tax expenses		—			5,606			862			1,315			12,456			1,882
Subtract:
Interest income		2,671			934			143			509			1,406			212
Adjusted EBITDA		(86,770	)		(228,274	)		(35,085	)		(62,316	)		(147,828	)		(22,339	)

Adjusted net loss represents net loss excluding share-based compensation expenses. The table below sets forth a reconciliation of our net loss to adjusted net loss for the periods indicated:

	Year Ended December 31,									Six Months Ended June 30,
	2016			2017						2017			2018
	RMB			RMB			US$			RMB			RMB			US$
	(in thousands)
Net loss		(89,169	)		(242,759	)		(37,312	)		(67,269	)		(182,262	)		(27,544	)
Add:
Share-based compensation expenses		4,520			8,517			1,309			3,753			19,663			2,972
Adjusted net loss		(84,649	)		(234,242	)		(36,003	)		(63,516	)		(162,599	)		(24,572	)

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MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF

FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

You should read the following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations in conjunction with the section entitled “Selected Consolidated Financial Data” and our consolidated financial statements and the related notes included elsewhere in this prospectus. This discussion contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results and the timing of selected events could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including those set forth under “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this prospectus.

Overview

We are a leading AI company in China that creates and delivers products and services to popularize English learning. Our proprietary AI teacher utilizes cutting-edge deep learning and adaptive learning technologies, big data, well-established education pedagogies and the mobile internet. We believe our innovative approach fundamentally transforms learning. We were named on the list of “The 100 Most Promising Private Artificial Intelligence Companies in the World” for 2018 by CB Insights. We were one of seven companies from China on the list and the only Chinese company out of the two in the education category globally. We were also named on the list of “50 Most Innovative Companies” for 2018 by Forbes China.

Since our inception in 2013, we have built the Liulishuo platform from the ground-up to deliver a user-centric, personalized and effective English learning experience accessible to anyone, anywhere, at anytime. Built on cutting-edge proprietary AI technologies, our AI teacher delivers a more personally tailored learning experience to each user. We provide our products and services on-demand via our mobile apps, primarily our flagship “English Liulishuo” mobile app. Our scalable technologies and mobile platform enable us to offer course packages with attractive pricing at a massive scale.

Our business has grown rapidly, and our AI-powered education approach has received wide acceptance. The number of our average monthly active users increased from 2.0 million in 2016 to 4.4 million in 2017, and further increased to 7.2 million in the first half of 2018. Our freemium model allows us to attract users with free services and convert them into paying users. We began monetization in 2016 and had approximately 70,500 paying users who purchased courses and services on our platform in that year. The number of paying users who purchased courses and services on our platform in 2017 increased rapidly to approximately 815,700. For the six months ended June 30, 2018, we had approximately 1,016,100 paying users purchase our courses and services. Our revenues increased substantially from RMB12.3 million in 2016 to RMB165.6 million (US$25.4 million) in 2017, and also from RMB40.1 million in the first half of 2017 to RMB232.3 million (US$35.1 million) in the first half of 2018. We incurred net losses of RMB242.8 million (US$37.3 million) in 2017 and RMB182.3 million (US$27.5 million) in the first half of 2018, as compared to net losses of RMB89.2 million in 2016 and RMB67.3 million in the first half of 2017, respectively.

Key Factors Affecting Our Results of Operations

Our results of operations and financial condition are affected by the general factors driving China’s private education industry. We have benefited from the rapid economic growth, significant urbanization, and higher per capita disposable income of urban households in China, which has allowed many in China to spend more disposable income on education, a category of great importance given the considerable value Chinese culture traditionally places on education. We anticipate that the demand for education will continue to grow. We have also benefited from the increasing mobile internet penetration in China. While our business is influenced by factors affecting the private education industry in China generally, we believe that our results of operations are more directly affected by company-specific factors, including the following factors.

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Market acceptance of AI-powered educational products and services

Our products and services are primarily AI-driven, with AI technologies built into the core of our courses, transforming the traditional approach to education. We operate our courses and services on the mobile platform, whereas it is customary in the education industry to have in-person teaching in physical classrooms. The market recognition and acceptance of the concept of learning on a mobile app and from an AI teacher affects the growth of our business and revenues. Our ability to educate and show existing and potential users the value and the effectiveness of our innovative approach is and will continue to be crucial for our business growth, financial performance and prospects. Our success in competing against other education services, including English learning services and mobile-enabled education services, is primarily dependent on our ability to improve users’ learning efficiency and effectiveness, provide quality learning content and promote our brand and products and services. We have been able to grow our user base rapidly. The number of our cumulative registered users increased from 34.0 million as of December 31, 2016 to 61.3 million as of December 31, 2017, and further increased to 83.8 million in the first half of 2018. The number of our average monthly active users increased from 2.0 million in 2016 to 4.4 million in 2017, and further increased to 7.2 million in the first half of 2018.

Our ability to grow net revenues and gross billings

We currently derive all of our net revenues from fees that we charge our users for providing online English learning services. In addition to net revenues, we consider gross billings an important indicator of the health of our business as it measures cash received from providing online English learning services, net of cash refunds paid to users. Through gross billings, we can better understand and evaluate our business performance and gain visibility of future revenues. Our net revenues and gross billings are driven by the number of our paying users and the average revenues per paying user. The growth of our paying user base is driven primarily by the growth of the number of active users and our ability to convert a greater portion of our active users into paying users. Our average revenue per paying user is primarily affected by the pricing of our courses and services and our revenue mix.

We analyze the following financial and operating metrics to evaluate our business results and operating performance, and make business plans and strategic decisions.

	2016		2017		First Half of 2017		First Half of 2018
Gross billings		RMB25.7 million		RMB313.0 million		RMB80.3 million		RMB345.7 million
Net revenues		RMB12.3 million		RMB165.6 million		RMB40.1 million		RMB232.3 million
Paying users		70,500		815,700		255,200		1,016,100

Our ability to manage our cost of revenues

Our ability to manage cost of revenues directly affects our profitability. Our cost of revenues mainly consist of IT service cost, content-related cost and service fees paid to contract human teachers for our premium services. We expect our cost of revenues to increase in absolute amounts as we continue to grow our business.

Our ability to improve sales and marketing efficiency

Sales and marketing is critical to our business as we need to educate the market about the benefits of our AI-powered learning products and services as well as grow our user base. Our sales and marketing expenses have become a significant majority of our total operating expenses. Our ability to lower such expenses as a percentage of net revenues depends on our ability to improve sales and marketing efficiency, such as acquiring users in a cost-effective manner, automating certain tasks performed by OSAs, and leveraging existing brand value and word-of-mouth promotions. In the foreseeable future, we expect our sales and marketing expenses to increase in absolute amounts as we spend more to promote our brand and grow our user base.

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Our ability to develop and leverage our AI capabilities in a cost-effective manner

We have developed cutting-edge proprietary AI technologies and built a team of AI experts. Our ability to leverage our AI capabilities to develop and enhance our products and services in a cost-effective manner affects our revenues and results of operations. We expect our research and development expenses to increase as we continue to develop and enhance our AI technologies, products and services, big data capabilities and technology infrastructure.

Key Components of Results of Operations

Net revenues

Our revenues are generated from providing online English learning services. We primarily offer two types of course packages, namely prepaid standard courses and multiple course packages. Our DongNi English standard courses constitute prepaid standard courses, which allow users to purchase courses to be consumed over a certain period of time. Our premium services are provided in the form of prepaid multiple course packages, including prepaid standard courses and course credits for one-to-one tutoring sessions with contract human teachers. Such packages allow users to purchase multiple courses for use before a certain expiration date. Our paying users purchase the services by subscribing to our course packages directly from our platform or through online commerce platform partners. Subscription fees are generally paid in advance, initially recorded as deferred revenues and recognized as revenues when revenue recognition criteria are met. In 2016 and 2017, we generated net revenues of RMB12.3 million and RMB165.6 million (US$25.4 million), respectively, and in the first half of 2017 and 2018, we generated net revenues of RMB40.1 million and RMB232.3 million (US$35.1 million), respectively. As of December 31, 2016 and 2017, respectively, we had RMB12.8 million and RMB116.4 million (US$17.9 million) of deferred revenues, and as of June 30, 2018, we had RMB238.0 million (US$36.0 million) of deferred revenues.

Cost of revenues

Our cost of revenues primarily consist of expenditures incurred in the generation of our revenue, mainly consisting of IT service cost, content-related cost and service fees paid to contract human teachers for our premium services. We had cost of revenues of RMB27.5 million and RMB57.7 million (US$8.9 million) in 2016 and 2017, respectively, and cost of revenues of RMB22.1 million and RMB55.0 million (US$8.3 million) in the first half of 2017 and 2018, respectively.

Operating expenses

The following table sets forth the components of our operating expenses by amounts and percentages of net revenues for the periods presented:

	Year Ended December 31,															Six Months Ended June 30,
	2016						2017									2017						2018
	RMB			%			RMB			US$			%			RMB			%			RMB			US$			%
	(in thousands, except for percentages)
Operating expenses:
Sales and marketing expenses		(28,534	)		(231.4	%)		(283,055	)		(43,505	)		(171.0	%)		(62,935	)		(157.1	%)		(259,849	)		(39,269	)		(111.9	%)
Research and development expenses		(30,013	)		(243.4	%)		(53,162	)		(8,171	)		(32.1	%)		(19,648	)		(49.0	%)		(60,941	)		(9,210	)		(26.2	%)
General and administrative expenses		(8,754	)		(71.0	%)		(19,807	)		(3,044	)		(12.0	%)		(6,958	)		(17.4	%)		(26,291	)		(3,973	)		(11.3	%)
Total operating expenses		(67,301	)		(545.8	%)		(356,024	)		(54,720	)		(215.1	%)		(89,541	)		(223.5	%)		(347,081	)		(52,452	)		(149.4	%)

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Our sales and marketing expenses consist primarily of (i) branding and marketing expenses, (ii) salaries and benefits for sales and marketing personnel including OSAs, (iii) commissions to online commerce platform partners for operations of our e-stores on their platforms and commissions to distribution channels (app stores), (iv) payment processing expenses, (v) rewards to users related to our user incentive programs and (vi) rental expenses associated with sales and marketing personnel. We expect our selling and marketing expenses to increase in absolute amounts in the foreseeable future as we spend more to promote our brand and grow our user base.

Our research and development expenses consist primarily of (i) salaries and benefits for research and development personnel, (ii) rental expenses associated with research and development personnel and (iii) depreciation of office premise and servers utilized by research and development personnel. We expect our research and development expenses to increase in absolute amounts as we continue to expand our product offerings and AI capabilities.

Our general and administrative expenses consist primarily of (i) salaries and benefits for general and administrative personnel, (ii) rental expenses associated with general and administrative personnel, (iii) general office expenses and (iv) professional service fees. We expect our general and administrative expenses to increase in absolute amounts in the foreseeable future due to the anticipated growth of our business as well as the additional accounting, insurance, investor relations and other expenses to be incurred as a public company.

Taxation

We are subject to various rates of income tax under different jurisdictions. The following summarizes major factors affecting our applicable tax rates in the Cayman Islands, Hong Kong, the United States and the PRC.

Cayman Islands

The Cayman Islands currently levies no taxes on individuals or corporations based upon profits, income, gains or appreciation and there is no taxation in the nature of inheritance tax or estate duty. There are no other taxes likely to be material to us levied by the government of the Cayman Islands except for stamp duties which may be applicable on instruments executed in, or after execution, brought within the jurisdiction of the Cayman Islands. In addition, the Cayman Islands does not impose withholding tax on dividend payments.

Hong Kong

Our subsidiary in Hong Kong is subject to Hong Kong profits tax rate of 16.5% on its estimated assessable profit for the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2017. Dividends income received from subsidiaries in China are not subject to Hong Kong profits tax.

United States

Our subsidiary incorporated in Delaware, LingoChamp US Inc., is subject to U.S. corporate income tax on its taxable income at a rate of up to 21% for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017 and U.S. corporate income tax on its taxable income of up to 35% for prior tax years.

PRC

Generally, our PRC subsidiaries and VIEs are subject to enterprise income tax on their taxable income at a statutory rate of 25% in China. The enterprise income tax is calculated based on the entity’s global income as determined under PRC tax laws and accounting standards. Yuguan and Shanghai Liulishuo each obtained its certificate of “High and New Technology Enterprises,” or HNTE, with a valid period of three years in 2017. Each is therefore eligible to enjoy a preferential tax rate of 15% from 2017 to 2019 to the extent it has taxable

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income under the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law, as long as it maintains the HNTE qualification and duly conducts relevant enterprise income tax filing procedures with the relevant tax authority. Certain PRC subsidiary and VIE are entitled to a preferential tax treatment as a “Small-scaled Enterprise” and thus enjoy a reduced tax rate of 20% on 50% of its taxable income in 2017.

We are subject to value-added tax at a rate of 6%, less any deductible value-added tax we have already paid or borne. We are also subject to surcharges on value-added tax payments in accordance with PRC law.

Dividends paid by our wholly foreign-owned subsidiaries in China to our intermediary holding company in Hong Kong will be subject to a withholding tax rate of 10%, unless the relevant Hong Kong entity satisfies all the requirements under the Arrangement between China and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region on the Avoidance of Double Taxation and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income and Capital and receives approval from the relevant tax authority. If our Hong Kong subsidiary satisfies all the requirements under the tax arrangement and receives approval from the relevant tax authority, then the dividends paid to the Hong Kong subsidiary would be subject to withholding tax at the standard rate of 5%. Effective from November 1, 2015, the above mentioned approval requirement has been abolished, but a Hong Kong entity is still required to file an application package with the relevant tax authority, and settle the overdue taxes if the preferential 5% tax rate is denied based on the subsequent review of the application package by the relevant tax authority. See “Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Our Corporate Structure—We may not be able to obtain certain benefits under the relevant tax arrangement for dividends paid by our PRC subsidiaries to us through our Hong Kong subsidiary.”

If our holding company in the Cayman Islands or any of our subsidiaries outside of China were deemed to be a “resident enterprise” under the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law, it would be subject to enterprise income tax on its worldwide income at a rate of 25%. See “Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Doing Business in China—If we are classified as a PRC resident enterprise for PRC income tax purposes or gains realized with respect to our ADSs or shares are deemed to be from PRC sources, we and our non-PRC shareholders or ADS holders could be subject to unfavorable tax consequences.”

Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

Prior to this offering, we have been a private company with limited accounting personnel and other resources with which to address our internal control and procedures and we were never required to evaluate our internal control within a specified period, and, as a result, we may experience difficulty in meeting these reporting requirements in a timely manner. Our management has not completed assessment of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, and our independent registered public accounting firm has not conducted an audit of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. However, in the course of preparing and auditing our consolidated financial statements for the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2017, we and our independent registered public accounting firm respectively identified one material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2017. In accordance with reporting requirements set forth by the SEC, a “material weakness” is a deficiency, or a combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting, such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of our company’s annual or interim consolidated financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis.

The material weakness identified relates to lack of sufficient competent financial reporting and accounting personnel with appropriate understanding of U.S. GAAP to design and implement formal period-end financial reporting policies and procedures; to address complex U.S. GAAP technical accounting issues; and to prepare and review our combined financial statements and related disclosures in accordance with U.S. GAAP and financial reporting requirements set forth by the SEC. Neither we nor our independent registered public accounting firm undertook a comprehensive assessment of our internal control under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act for purposes of identifying and reporting any material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting. Had we performed a formal assessment of our internal control over financial reporting or had our independent

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registered public accounting firm performed an audit of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, additional material weaknesses may have been identified.

To remedy our identified material weakness subsequent to December 31, 2017, we plan to undertake steps to strengthen our internal control over financial reporting, including: (i) hiring more qualified personnel equipped with relevant U.S. GAAP and SEC reporting experience and qualifications to strengthen the financial reporting function and to set up a financial and system control framework, (ii) implementing regular and continuous U.S. GAAP accounting and financial reporting training programs for our accounting and financial reporting personnel, (iii) establishing effective oversight and clarifying reporting requirements for non-recurring and complex transactions to ensure consolidated financial statements and related disclosures are accurate, complete and in compliance with U.S. GAAP and SEC reporting requirements. Further, we plan to enhance an internal audit function as well as engaging an external consulting firm to help us assess our compliance readiness under Rule 13a-15 of the Exchange Act and improve overall internal control.

However, we cannot assure you that we will remediate our material weakness in a timely manner. See “Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Our Business—If we fail to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting, we may be unable to accurately report our financial results or prevent fraud.”

As a company with less than US$1.07 billion in revenue for our last fiscal year, we qualify as an “emerging growth company” pursuant to the JOBS Act. An emerging growth company may take advantage of specified reduced reporting and other requirements that are otherwise applicable generally to public companies. These provisions include exemption from the auditor attestation requirement under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, in the assessment of the emerging growth company’s internal control over financial reporting.

Critical Accounting Policies

An accounting policy is considered critical if it requires an accounting estimate to be made based on assumptions about matters that are highly uncertain at the time such estimate is made, and if different accounting estimates that reasonably could have been used, or changes in the accounting estimates that are reasonably likely to occur periodically, could materially impact the consolidated financial statements.

We prepare our financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP, which requires us to make judgments, estimates and assumptions. We continually evaluate these estimates and assumptions based on the most recently available information, our own historical experience and various other assumptions that we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances. Since the use of estimates is an integral component of the financial reporting process, actual results could differ from our expectations as a result of changes in our estimates. Some of our accounting policies require a higher degree of judgment than others in their application and require us to make significant accounting estimates.

The following descriptions of critical accounting policies, judgments and estimates should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes and other disclosures included in this prospectus. When reviewing our financial statements, you should consider (i) our selection of critical accounting policies, (ii) the judgments and other uncertainties affecting the application of such policies and (iii) the sensitivity of reported results to changes in conditions and assumptions.

Consolidation of VIEs

Our consolidated financial statements include the financial statements of LAIX Inc. (formerly known as LingoChamp Inc.), its subsidiaries and its VIEs. All profits, transactions and balances among the foregoing entities have been eliminated upon consolidation.

PRC laws and regulations restrict foreign ownership in value-added telecommunication services and other internet-related business. Due to these restrictions, we conduct substantially all of our operations in China

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through contractual arrangements among our WFOE, our VIEs and the shareholders of our VIEs. As a result of these contractual arrangements, the shareholders of our VIEs irrevocably granted our WFOE the power to exercise all voting rights to which they were entitled. In addition, our WFOE has the option to acquire all of the equity interests in the VIEs, to the extent permitted by then-effective PRC laws and regulations, for pre-agreed consideration, who shall in turn pay such consideration back to our WFOE. Finally, our WFOE is entitled to receive service fees for certain services to be provided to the VIEs in an amount at our WFOE’s discretion. We therefore concluded that we are the primary beneficiary of our VIEs. As such, we consolidate the results of operations of the VIEs in our consolidated financial statements.

Revenue recognition

We primarily offer two types of prepaid course packages, namely prepaid standard courses and prepaid multiple course packages. Our DongNi English standard courses constitute prepaid standard courses, which allow users to purchase courses to be consumed over a certain period of time. Our premium services are provided in the form of prepaid multiple course packages, including prepaid standard courses and course credits for one-to-one tutoring sessions with contract human teachers. Such packages allow users to purchase multiple courses for their use before a certain expiration date. Our users purchase the courses by subscribing to them either directly from our platform or through our online commerce platform partners. Subscription fees are generally paid in advance and are initially recorded as deferred revenue.

For users who withdraw from contracts with us, we refund subscription fees corresponding to any remaining undelivered learning services. Withdrawals are recorded as reductions of the deferred revenue related to subscription fees received in advance and have no impact on recognized revenue.

We have assessed all variable considerations identified when determining the transaction price, taking into account the various forms that such variable considerations may take. We selectively offer performance-based refunds to incentivize our registered users to purchase prepaid course packages. We have two types of revenue models – the non-refundable course model and the refundable course model. Revenues for the non-refundable course model are recognized ratably over the contractual course period as services are provided. Under the refundable course model, a user is eligible to obtain a refund if the user achieves certain agreed performance goals, including completing a minimum number of learning hours within a set period of time, achieving various measures of learning efficiency and receiving a certain overall score for each course in the package. Based on our historical records of performance-based refunds, we estimate a refund rate that constitutes a reduction of the transaction price when recognizing revenues ratably as services are provided over the contractual course period we review and supervise the refund rate on a periodic basis. By adjusting the difficulty level of the exams in the packages, we are able to maintain a stable refund rate, which constitutes a reasonable and reliable basis for us to estimate and calculate the amount of the refund. In the event that the estimated refund amount is larger than a user’s individual cumulative revenue basis, we recognize such negative revenue as selling expenses. Except for the aforementioned performance-based refunds to our customers, no other circumstance causes variability in the consideration promised in the online courses offered by the Company.

We recognize revenue on a gross basis as we meet the standard of a principal having control over the service or directing the service.

Prepaid standard courses

Prepaid standard courses typically range from 30 days to 360 days. A user can access the standard courses without limit within such user’s fixed contract period. Revenue is recognized on a straight-line basis over the contractual course period.

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Prepaid multiple course packages

Prepaid multiple course packages typically range from 180 days to 720 days. Each type of course is a separate unit of accounting, as each type has a distinct nature with different patterns and measurements of transfer to users.

We determine the standalone selling price for each type of course in the package and allocate the transaction price based on the relative value of each type of course in the arrangement, if applicable. The best evidence of standalone selling price is the price we charge for a certain type of course when we sell it separately under similar circumstances to similar users. For a type of course that is not being sold separately, we determine the value of each type based on its cost plus an expected margin.

For the standard courses included in prepaid multiple course packages, revenue is recognized on a straight-line basis over the contractual course period. For those one-to-one courses, revenue is recognized when the course credit is consumed with estimates for breakage from unconsumed courses at contract expiration. The expected breakage amount is recognized as revenue in proportion to the pattern of course credits consumed by the customers based on actual breakage data the Company has accumulated. The expected breakage amount is updated on a periodic basis.

Other courses

We also provide other courses, such as Authentic Pronunciation and IELTS speaking practice tests. Revenues are recognized ratably over a fixed term of the agreement or an estimated viewership period as services are provided.

User Incentive Program

We have incentive programs for our registered users to enhance user stickiness and to incentivize users. We offer points to registered users who refer new users to our platform, or when they participate in various activities in our mobile app. Users can redeem the points for free gifts. The estimated incremental costs related to free gifts are recognized as sales and marketing expenses.

Share-based compensation

Share-based compensation expenses arise from share-based awards, including share options for the purchase of ordinary shares. We account for share-based awards granted to employees in accordance with ASC 718 Stock Compensation. For share options for the purchase of ordinary shares granted to employees classified as equity awards, the related share-based compensation expenses are recognized in the consolidated financial statements based on the fair value of the awards on the grant date, which is calculated using the binomial option pricing model. The determination of the fair value is affected by the share price as well as assumptions regarding a number of complex and subjective variables, including the expected share price volatility, actual and projected employee share option exercise behavior, risk-free interest rates and expected dividends. The fair value of the ordinary shares is assessed using the income approach/discounted cash flow method, with a discount for lack of marketability, given that the shares underlying the awards were not publicly traded at the time of grant. Share-based compensation expenses are recorded net of estimated forfeitures using straight-line method in accordance with the service period requirement, such that expenses are recorded only for those share-based awards that are expected to ultimately vest.

Fair value of our ordinary shares

We have been a private company with no quoted market prices for our ordinary shares. We therefore need to make estimates of the fair value of our ordinary shares at various dates in order to determine the fair value of our

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ordinary shares at the date of the grant of a share-based compensation award to our employees. Estimates will not be necessary to determine the fair value of new awards once the American depositary shares underlying our ordinary shares begin trading.

The following table sets forth the fair value of our ordinary shares estimated taking into account independent valuation advice:

Date of Options Grant	Share Options Granted		Exercise Price (US$/ Share)		Fair Value of Option (US$)		Fair Value of Ordinary Shares (US$)		DLOM			Discount Rate			Type of Valuation
July 1, 2016		722,070		0.20		3.32		3.52		26	%		25	%		Retrospective
January 1, 2017		69,500		0.20		3.52		3.72		24	%		25	%		Retrospective
June 1, 2017		609,500		0.20		5.54		5.74		18	%		24	%		Retrospective
December 31, 2017		558,584		0.60		7.39		7.99		15	%		24	%		Retrospective
April 25, 2018		646,000		0.60		10.90		11.50		10	%		23	%		Contemporaneous
July 31, 2018		1,489,000		0.60		12.79		13.39		5	%		22	%		Contemporaneous

The option-pricing method was used to allocate equity value of our company to preferred and ordinary shares, taking into account the guidance prescribed by the AICPA Audit and Accounting Practice Aid. This method requires making estimates of the anticipated timing of a potential liquidity event, such as a sale of our company or an initial public offering, and estimates of the volatility of our equity securities. The anticipated timing is based on the plans of our board and management.

The other major assumptions used in calculating the fair value of ordinary shares include:

• Weighted average cost of capital, or WACC: The WACCs were determined in consideration of factors including risk-free rate, comparative industry risk, equity risk premium, company size and non-systematic risk factors;

• Comparable companies: In deriving the WACCs, which are used as the discount rates under the income approach, certain publicly traded companies in the online education industry were selected for reference as our guideline companies.

• Discount for lack of marketability, or DLOM: DLOM was quantified by the Finnerty’s Average-Strike put options model. Under this option-pricing method, which assumed that the put option is struck at the average price of the stock before the privately held shares can be sold, the cost of the put option was considered as a basis to determine the DLOM. This option pricing method is one of the methods commonly used in estimating DLOM as it can take into consideration factors such as timing of a liquidity event, for instance an initial public offering, and estimated volatility of our shares. The further the valuation date is from an expected liquidity event, the higher the put option value is and thus the higher the implied DLOM is. The lower the DLOM used for the valuation is, the higher the determined fair value of the ordinary shares becomes. DLOM remained in the range of 35% to 15% in the period from 2015 to 2017.

Significant factors contributing to the difference in fair value determined

The determined fair value of our ordinary shares increased from US$3.52 per share as of July 1, 2016 to US$3.72 per share as of January 1, 2017. We believe the increase in the fair value of our ordinary shares was primarily attributable to the following factors:

• Our net revenues grew significantly to RMB12.3 million in 2016;

• As we progressed towards an initial public offering, the lead time to an expected liquidity event decreased, resulting in a decrease of DLOM from 26% as of July 1, 2016 to 24% as of January 1, 2017;

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• We adjusted our financial forecast to reflect the anticipated higher revenue growth rate and improved financial performance in the future due to the abovementioned developments.

The determined fair value of our ordinary shares increased from US$3.72 per share as of January 1, 2017 to US$5.74 per share as of June 1, 2017 and further to US$7.99 per share as of December 31, 2017, We believe the increase in the fair value of our ordinary shares was primarily attributable to the following factors:

• Our net revenues grew significantly from RMB12.3 million in 2016 to RMB165.6 million in 2017, representing a substantial annual growth rate;

• As we progressed towards an initial public offering, the lead time to an expected liquidity event decreased, resulting in a decrease of DLOM from 24% as of January 1, 2017 to 15% as of December 31, 2017;

• As a result of the events described above and the growth of our business, the discount rate decreased from 25% as of January 1, 2017 to 24% as of December 31, 2017; and

• We adjusted our financial forecast to reflect the anticipated higher revenue growth rate and improved financial performance in the future due to the abovementioned developments.

The determined fair value of our ordinary shares increased from US$7.99 per share as of December 31, 2017 to US$11.50 per share as of April 25, 2018 and further to US$13.39 per share as of July 31, 2018, We believe the increase in the fair value of our ordinary shares was primarily attributable to the following factors:

• Our net revenues grew significantly from RMB40.1 million in the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB232.3 million (US$35.1 million) in the six months ended June 30, 2018, representing a substantial annual growth rate;

• As we progressed towards an initial public offering, the lead time to an expected liquidity event decreased, resulting in a decrease of DLOM from 15% as of December 31, 2017 to 10% as of April 25, 2017 and further to 5% as of July 31, 2018;

• We began monetization of a new product, Liuli Reading, in the first quarter of 2018. The gross billings generated from this product have increased significantly since its introduction. The successful monetization of this product marked an important milestone in our business development, and as a result we revised our financial forecast upwards as of April 25, 2018. Subsequently, during the second quarter of 2018, the revenue from this product increased by approximately 350% compared with that of the first quarter of 2018, which continued to exceed our expectations and original forecast and therefore, we further revised our forecast as of July 31, 2018;

• As a result of the events described above and the growth of our business, the discount rate decreased from 25% as of January 1, 2017 to 24% as of December 31, 2017; and

• We adjusted our financial forecast to reflect the anticipated higher revenue growth rate and improved financial performance in the future due to the abovementioned developments.

Income taxes

Current income taxes are provided on the basis of net income for financial reporting purposes, adjusted for income and expense items which are not assessable or deductible for income tax purposes, in accordance with the regulations of the relevant tax jurisdictions.

Deferred income taxes are accounted for using an asset and liability method. Under this method, deferred income taxes are recognized for the tax consequences of temporary differences by applying enacted statutory rates applicable to future years to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts and the tax bases of existing assets and liabilities. The tax base of an asset or liability is the amount attributed to that asset or

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liability for tax purpose. The effect on deferred taxes of a change in tax rates is recognized in the consolidated statements of comprehensive loss in the period of change. A valuation allowance is provided to reduce the amount of deferred tax assets if it is considered more likely than not that some portion of, or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized.

The guidance on accounting for uncertainties in income taxes prescribes a more likely than not threshold for financial statements recognition and measurement of a tax position taken or expected to be taken in a tax return. Guidance was also provided on derecognition of income tax assets and liabilities, classification of current and deferred income tax assets and liabilities, accounting for interest and penalties associated with tax positions, accounting for income taxes in interim periods, and income tax disclosures. Significant judgment is required in evaluating our uncertain tax positions and determining its provision for income taxes. We did not recognize any significant interest and penalties associated with uncertain tax positions for the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2017. As of December 31, 2016 and 2017, we did not have any unrecognized uncertain tax positions.

Results of Operations

The following table summarizes our consolidated results of operations and as percentages of our total revenues for the periods presented.

	Year Ended December 31,															Six Months Ended June 30,
	2016						2017									2017						2018
	RMB			%			RMB			US$			%			RMB			%			RMB			US$			%
	(in thousands, except for percentages)
Net revenues		12,332			100.0	%		165,561			25,446			100.0	%		40,061			100.0	%		232,308			35,107			100.0	%
Cost of revenues(1)		(27,503	)		(223.0	%)		(57,691	)		(8,867	)		(34.8	%)		(22,110	)		(55.2	%)		(55,007	)		(8,313	)		(23.7	%)
Gross (loss)/ profit		(15,171	)		(123.0	%)		107,870			16,579			65.2	%		17,951			44.8	%		177,301			26,794			76.3	%
Operating expenses:
Sales and marketing expenses(1)		(28,534	)		(231.4	%)		(283,055	)		(43,505	)		(171.0	%)		(62,935	)		(157.1	%)		(259,849	)		(39,269	)		(111.9	%)
Research and development expenses(1)		(30,013	)		(243.4	%)		(53,162	)		(8,171	)		(32.1	%)		(19,648	)		(49.0	%)		(60,941	)		(9,210	)		(26.2	%)
General and administrative expenses(1)		(8,754	)		(71.0	%)		(19,807	)		(3,044	)		(12.0	%)		(6,958	)		(17.4	%)		(26,291	)		(3,973	)		(11.3	%)
Total operating expenses		(67,301	)		(545.8	%)		(356,024	)		(54,720	)		(215.1	%)		(89,541	)		(223.5	%)		(347,081	)		(52,452	)		(149.4	%)
Loss from operations		(82,472	)		(668.8	%)		(248,154	)		(38,141	)		(149.9	%)		(71,590	)		(178.7	%)		(169,780	)		(25,658	)		(73.1	%)
Other income and expenses:
Interest income		2,671			21.7	%		934			144			0.6	%		509			1.3	%		1,406			213			0.7	%
Foreign exchange related (losses)/gains, net		(9,839	)		(79.8	%)		7,145			1,098			4.3	%		3,658			9.1	%		(828	)		(125	)		(0.4	%)
Change in fair value of short-term investment		59			0.5	%		750			115			0.5	%		—			—			—			—			—
Other income/(expenses), net		412			3.3	%		2,172			334			1.3	%		1,469			3.7	%		(604	)		(92	)		(0.3	%)
Net loss before tax		(89,169	)		(723.1	%)		(237,153	)		(36,450	)		(143.2	%)		(65,954	)		(164.6	%)		(169,806	)		(25,662	)		(73.1	%)
Income tax expense		—			—			(5,606	)		(862	)		(3.4	%)		(1,315	)		(3.3	%)		(12,456	)		(1,882	)		(5.4	%)
Net loss		(89,169	)		(723.1	%)		(242,759	)		(37,312	)		(146.6	%)		(67,269	)		(167.9	%)		(182,262	)		(27,544	)		(78.5	%)

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Note:

(1) Including share-based compensation expenses as follows:

	Year Ended December 31,						Six Months Ended June 30,
	2016		2017				2017		2018
	RMB		RMB		US$		RMB		RMB		US$
	(in thousands)
Cost of revenues		1,257		1,341		206		1,009		588		89
Sales and marketing expenses		839		2,380		366		874		2,182		330
Research and development expenses		2,285		3,799		584		1,718		12,592		1,903
General and administrative expenses		139		997		153		152		4,301		650
Total		4,520		8,517		1,309		3,753		19,663		2,972

Six months ended June 30, 2017 compared with six months ended June 30, 2018

Net revenues

Our net revenues increased substantially from RMB40.1 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB232.3 million (US$35.1 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018, primarily due to a growth in subscriptions for our DongNi English standard courses. To a lesser extent, the growth in our premium services and other courses, including the introduction of the Liuli Reading in 2018, also contributed to our revenue increase. Across our platform, the number of paying users who purchased courses and services on our platform for the six months ended June 30, 2018 grew rapidly to approximately 1,016,100, as compared to approximately 255,200 for the six months ended June 30, 2017.

Cost of revenues

Our cost of revenues increased by 148.8% from RMB22.1 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB55.0 million (US$8.3 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018, primarily due to increases in (i) salaries and benefits for certain full-time employees, (ii) IT service cost, and (iii) service fees paid to contract human teachers for our premium services, all resulting from our business growth and user base expansion. Salaries and benefits for full-time employees increased from RMB6.6 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB16.6 million (US$2.5 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018. Our IT service cost increased from RMB5.9 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB15.5 million (US$2.3 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018. The service fees paid to contract human teachers for our premium services increased from RMB2.3 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB9.9 million (US$1.5 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018.

Gross profit

As a result of increased economies of scale, our gross profit increased from RMB18.0 million, representing a gross margin of 44.8%, for the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB177.3 million (US$26.8 million), representing a gross margin of 76.3%, for the six months ended June 30, 2018.

Operating expenses

Our total operating expenses increased by 287.6% from RMB89.5 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB347.1 million (US$52.5 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018, as all components of operating expenses increased due to our business growth, the development and introduction of new products and the expansion of our user base.

Sales and marketing expenses. Our sales and marketing expenses increased substantially from RMB62.9 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB259.8 million (US$39.3 million) for the six months ended

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June 30, 2018, primarily due to increases in (i) branding and marketing expenses, (ii) salaries and benefits for sales and marketing personnel, including our OSAs, and (iii) commissions to distribution channels (app stores) and online commerce platform partners. Our branding and marketing expenses increased from RMB30.6 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB130.0 million (US$19.6 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018 as we invested substantially in our marketing efforts to increase our user base and enhance our brand and reputation. Salaries and benefits for sales and marketing personnel increased from RMB19.5 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB72.3 million (US$10.9 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018 mainly due to an increase in our OSA headcount, which increased from over 330 as of June 30, 2017 to over 1,000 as of June 30, 2018. Commissions to distribution channels (app stores) and online commerce platform partners increased from RMB6.1 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB27.3 million (US$4.1 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018.

Research and development expenses. Our research and development expenses increased by 210.2% from RMB19.6 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB60.9 million (US$9.2 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018, primarily due to an increase in salaries and benefits for research and development personnel from RMB14.8 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB41.8 million (US$6.3 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018. The headcount of our research and development personnel increased from 111 as of June 30, 2017 to 234 as of June 30, 2018.

General and administrative expenses. Our general and administrative expenses increased by 277.8% from RMB7.0 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017 to RMB26.3 million (US$4.0 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018, primarily attributable to increases in our human resources expenses and office expenses. Our general and administrative personnel headcount increased from 23 as of June 30, 2017 to 58 as of June 30, 2018.

Loss from operations

As a result of the factors set out above, we incurred loss from operation of RMB169.8 million (US$25.7 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018, as compared to RMB71.6 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017.

Interest income

We had interest income of RMB1.4 million (US$0.2 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018, as compared to RMB0.5 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017, primarily due to a significant increase in bank interest income as a result of the deposit of our Series C financing proceeds.

Foreign exchange related (losses)/gains, net

We had a foreign exchange related loss of RMB0.8 million (US$0.1 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018, as compared to a foreign exchange related gain of RMB3.7 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017, primarily due to the depreciation of Renminbi against the U.S. dollar.

Other income/(expenses), net

We had net other expenses of RMB0.6 million (US$0.1 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018, as compared to net other income RMB1.5 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017, primarily due to an increase in service fees to loan companies.

Income tax expense

We incurred income tax expense of RMB12.5 million (US$1.9 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018, as compared to RMB1.3 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017, primarily due to an increase in taxable income in relevant tax jurisdictions.

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Net loss

As a result of the foregoing, we incurred a net loss of RMB182.3 million (US$27.5 million) for the six months ended June 30, 2018, as compared to a net loss of RMB67.3 million for the six months ended June 30, 2017.

Year ended December 31, 2017 compared with year ended December 31, 2016

Net revenues

Our net revenues increased substantially from RMB12.3 million in 2016 to RMB165.6 million (US$25.4 million) in 2017, primarily due to a growth in subscriptions for our standard DongNi English courses. To a lesser extent, the growth in our premium services and the introduction of the Authentic Pronunciation course in 2017 also contributed to our revenue increase. Across our platform, the number of paying users who purchased courses and services on our platform in 2017 grew rapidly to approximately 815,700, as compared to approximately 70,500 in 2016.

Cost of revenues

Our cost of revenues increased by 109.8% from RMB27.5 million in 2016 to RMB57.7 million (US$8.9 million) in 2017, primarily due to increases in (i) IT service cost, (ii) content-related cost and (iii) service fees paid to contract human teachers for our premium services, all resulting from our business growth and user base expansion. Our IT service cost increased from RMB6.8 million in 2016 to RMB16.2 million (US$2.5 million) in 2017. Our content-related cost increased from RMB6.5 million in 2016 to RMB9.8 million (US$1.5 million) in 2017. The service fees paid to contract human teachers for our premium services increased from RMB2.1 million in 2016 to RMB7.9 million (US$1.2 million) in 2017.

Gross loss/profit

As a result of the foregoing, we incurred a gross loss of RMB15.2 million in 2016, but achieved a gross profit of RMB107.9 million (US$16.6 million), representing a gross margin of 65.2% in 2017, primarily due to increased economies of scale.

Operating expenses

Our total operating expenses increased by 429.0% from RMB67.3 million in 2016 to RMB356.0 million (US$54.7 million) in 2017, as all components of operating expenses increased due to our business growth and the expansion of our user base.

Sales and marketing expenses. Our sales and marketing expenses increased substantially from RMB28.5 million in 2016 to RMB283.1 million (US$43.5 million) in 2017, primarily due to increases in (i) branding and marketing expenses, (ii) salaries and benefits for sales and marketing personnel, including our OSAs, and (iii) commissions to distribution channels (app stores) and online commerce platform partners. Our branding and marketing expenses increased from RMB15.8 million in 2016 to RMB165.1 million (US$25.4 million) in 2017 as we invested substantially in our marketing efforts to increase our user base and enhance our brand and reputation. Salaries and benefits for sales and marketing personnel increased from RMB7.4 million in 2016 to RMB69.5 million (US$10.7 million) in 2017 mainly due to an increase in our OSA headcount, which increased from 58 as of December 31, 2016 to over 600 as of December 31, 2017. Commissions to distribution channels (app stores) and online commerce platform partners increased from RMB1.7 million in 2016 to RMB22.3 million (US$3.4 million) in 2017.

Research and development expenses. Our research and development expenses increased by 77.1% from RMB30.0 million in 2016 to RMB53.2 million (US$8.2 million) in 2017, primarily due to an increase in salaries

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and benefits for research and development personnel from RMB24.7 million in 2016 to RMB43.5 million (US$6.7 million) in 2017. The headcount of our research and development personnel increased from 53 as of December 31, 2016 to 157 as of December 31, 2017.

General and administrative expenses. Our general and administrative expenses increased by 126.3% from RMB8.8 million in 2016 to RMB19.8 million (US$3.0 million) in 2017, primarily attributable to an increase in salaries and benefits for general and administrative personnel from RMB4.3 million in 2016 to RMB8.1 million (US$1.2 million) in 2017. Our general and administrative personnel headcount increased from 14 as of December 31, 2016 to 35 as of December 31, 2017.

Loss from operations

As a result of the factors set out above, we incurred loss from operation of RMB248.2 million (US$38.1 million) in 2017, as compared to RMB82.5 million in 2016.

Interest income

We had interest income of RMB0.9 million (US$0.1 million) in 2017, as compared to RMB2.7 million in 2016, primarily because we invested our excess cash into fixed income securities during the year and recognized the return on such securities in other income.

Foreign exchange related (losses)/gains, net

We had a foreign exchange gain of RMB7.1 million (US$1.1 million) in 2017, as compared to a foreign exchange loss of RMB9.8 million in 2016, primarily due to the appreciation of Renminbi against the U.S. dollar.

Change in fair value of short-term investment

We had change in fair value of short-term investment of RMB0.8 million (US$0.1 million) in 2017, as compared to RMB0.1 million in 2016.

Other income, net

We had net other income of RMB2.2 million (US$0.3 million) in 2017, as compared to RMB0.4 million in 2016.

Income tax expense

We incurred income tax expense of RMB5.6 million (US$0.9 million) in 2017, as compared to nil in 2016.

Net loss

As a result of the foregoing, we incurred a net loss of RMB242.8 million (US$37.3 million) in 2017, as compared to a net loss of RMB89.2 million in 2016.

Selected Quarterly Results of Operations

The following table sets forth our unaudited consolidated quarterly results of operations for the periods indicated. You should read the following table in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and the related notes included elsewhere in this prospectus. We have prepared this unaudited condensed consolidated quarterly financial data on the same basis as we have prepared our audited consolidated financial statements. The unaudited condensed consolidated quarterly financial data includes all adjustments, consisting only of normal

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and recurring adjustments, that our management considered necessary for a fair statement of our financial position and operating results for the quarters presented.

	Three Months Ended
	March 31, 2017			June 30, 2017			September 30, 2017			December 31, 2017			March 31, 2018			June 30, 2018
	(in RMB thousands)
Net revenues		13,581			26,480			49,446			76,054			96,779			135,529
Cost of revenues(1)		(9,365	)		(12,745	)		(13,947	)		(21,634	)		(23,614	)		(31,393	)
Gross profit		4,216			13,735			35,499			54,420			73,165			104,136
Operating expenses:
Sales and marketing expenses(1)		(20,171	)		(42,764	)		(83,944	)		(136,176	)		(126,943	)		(132,906	)
Research and development expenses(1)		(7,831	)		(11,817	)		(11,886	)		(21,628	)		(24,853	)		(36,088	)
General and administrative expenses(1)		(1,954	)		(5,004	)		(5,086	)		(7,763	)		(12,575	)		(13,716	)
Total operating expenses		(29,956	)		(59,585	)		(100,916	)		(165,567	)		(164,371	)		(182,710	)
Loss from operations		(25,740	)		(45,850	)		(65,417	)		(111,147	)		(91,206	)		(78,574	)
Other income and expenses:
Interest income		265			244			240			185			125			1,281
Foreign exchange related (losses)/gains, net		816			2,842			1,663			1,824			4,233			(5,061	)
Change in fair value of short-term investment		930			(930	)		—			750			—			—
Other income/(expenses), net		417			1,052			508			195			528			(1,132	)
Net loss before tax		(23,312	)		(42,642	)		(63,006	)		(108,193	)		(86,320	)		(83,486	)
Income tax expense		—			(1,315	)		(1,579	)		(2,712	)		(6,036	)		(6,420	)
Net loss		(23,312	)		(43,957	)		(64,585	)		(110,905	)		(92,356	)		(89,906	)

Note:

(1) Including share-based compensation expenses as follows:

	Three Months Ended
	March 31, 2017		June 30, 2017		September 30, 2017		December 31, 2017		March 31, 2018		June 30, 2018
	(in thousands of RMB)
Cost of revenues		560		449		131		201		260		328
Sales and marketing expenses		383		491		925		581		983		1,199
Research and development expenses		783		935		1,336		746		5,026		7,566
General and administrative expenses		72		80		92		753		2,031		2,270
Total		1,798		1,955		2,484		2,281		8,300		11,363

Our quarterly net revenues increased substantially during these periods, especially since the third quarter of 2017, primarily due to the significant increase in popularity of our DongNi English standard courses, and to a lesser extent, due to the increases in our premium services and other courses. We believe that our enhanced ability to offer customized and tailored courses to our users has resulted in improved monetization. The net revenues trend we have experienced in the past may not apply to, or be indicative of, our future operating results.

Our quarterly cost of revenues also increased substantially during these periods, which was in line with the increase of our net revenues. Excluding the share-based compensation expenses, our total operating expenses generally increased in these periods as we grew our business and expanded our user base, except for the first quarter of 2018. The decrease in our quarterly operating expenses from the fourth quarter of 2017 to the first

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quarter of 2018 was primarily due to a decrease in sales and marketing efforts during the holiday season. Our quarterly total operating expenses as a percentage of our net revenues has shown a decreasing trend since the first quarter of 2018, primarily attributable to the combined effect of our increased economics of scale and the rapid growth of our net revenues.

As we are at a relatively early stage of development and our business is rapidly growing, our financial results have not been materially impacted by seasonality. Once our business development has reached a more matured stage, our financial results may reflect seasonal effects in the future.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

The following table sets forth a summary of our cash flows for the periods presented:

	Year Ended December 31,									Six Months Ended June 30,
	2016			2017						2017			2018
	RMB			RMB			US$			RMB			RMB			US$
	(in thousands)
Summary Consolidated Cash Flow Data:
Net cash used in operating activities		(38,591	)		(60,120	)		(9,240	)		(9,581	)		(61,949	)		(9,362)
Net cash (used in)/provided by investing activities		(121,677	)		69,901			10,744			119,128			22,223			3,359
Net cash provided by/(used in) financing activities		—			377,191			57,973			324,623			(798	)		(121)
Net (decrease)/increase in cash and cash equivalents		(160,268	)		386,972			59,477			434,170			(40,524	)		(6,124)
Exchange rate effect on cash and cash equivalents