The human gut virome is a critical component of the microbiome, regulating bacterial communities and impacting human health. Understanding its genomic diversity and functional variations across the globe could improve viral discovery and related treatments, but most available data are derived only from Western populations or focus on a subset of the most virulent or abundant viruses, limiting their applications. To fill this gap, researchers recently compiled a metagenomic catalog of > 120,000 gut viral genomes from over 3,000 participants across China. Called the Chinese Gut Viral Reference (CGVR) set, it consists of > 70,000 viral OTUs, nearly 90% of which are absent from current databases and thus unique to the Chinese population. Further analysis targeted single-nucleotide variations in about 230 globally prevalent viral OTUs, with almost 20% showing significant genetic stratification between Chinese and Non-Chinese populations. The predicted bacterial hosts of these viruses exhibit distinct genetic components linked to health-related functions like multidrug resistance. These findings greatly expand our understanding of global viral diversity, revealing distinct genetic profiles across populations that could help guide new strategies in precision medicine and the development of more inclusive, globally relevant microbiome-based interventions.