The digital economy has generated an increasing number of flexible jobs, bringing more opportunities for young people.

Photo taken on June 25 shows popular livestreaming hosts introducing a scenic spot in Haikou, capital of South China’s Hainan Province. (Photo by Zhang Mao/People’s Daily Online)

Over the past six months or so, more than 500,000 merchants have posted recruitment notices on Alipay, an app designed to offer an array of services, receiving resumés from 65 million college students.

Half of the positions enable the applicants to make money at home, with the average daily wage exceeding 200 yuan.

E-sports hosts, dialect translators, punsters and dream-talk editors are the most popular new occupations among young people, and often feature daily payment and flexible working hours.

Since this year, the number of job hunters who choose such flexible jobs on Alipay has increased by nearly seven times, and are mostly made up of people born after 1995 and even 2000.

Thirteen government departments in China have issued opinions to encourage the development of the new individual economy and by-work innovation to open up new spaces for consumption and employment.

Many digital economy platforms have also taken measures to promote the new individual economy. In June, short video platforms TikTok and iXigua, as well as Jinri Toutiao, a news and information content platform, launched a program to provide content entrepreneurs with a package of services, such as operation training.