Metropolitan Police Commander Kevin Southworth said: "Given how prolific Zou seems to have been, there is every potential he could be one of the most prolific offenders that we've ever seen in this space."
Detectives have yet to confirm whether the 23 people who have come forward add to their estimates that more than 50 other women from across the globe may have been targeted by Zou. The University College London student is set to be sentenced on June 19.
Work is already under way to see if the 23 new potential cases could result in Zou facing further charges, according to Mr Southworth.
TRAUMA
He added: "We have victims reaching out to us from different parts of the globe. At the moment, the primary places where we believe offending may have occurred appear to be both in England, here in London, and over in China.
"We haven't had any victim-survivors yet report an offence in Belfast [where Zou...