Zhang Shijun's Insights on Building a Recommendation Middleware Platform at iQiyi

This interview with Zhang Shijun, a senior technical manager at iQiyi, discusses his role in developing a recommendation middleware platform. The project aimed to create a scalable, efficient system to support multiple business units like short videos and live streaming. Key challenges included code maintainability, performance bottlenecks, and abstracting diverse business requirements into a unified platform. Solutions involved refactoring code for stability, optimizing resource allocation, and designing abstract data structures to handle different content types (e.g., manga vs. videos). The platform reduced development time by 30% and improved efficiency significantly.

The middleware now serves over a dozen iQiyi businesses, enabling rapid onboarding of new recommendation features. Zhang emphasizes the importance of continuous learning and adaptability in tech, particularly in fast-evolving fields like recommendation systems. He also highlights the balance between technical rigor and business agility, ensuring the platform remains both flexible and robust.