Andreessen Horowitz (a16z)'s latest report on consumer AI reveals significant market dynamics. The report tracks the top 100 consumer AI applications, ranked using Similarweb web traffic data and Sensor Tower mobile app data, updated biennially. The latest ranking shows 17 new companies entered the top 50 since August 2024, signifying a major shift in the market landscape.
This ranking focuses on AI-native applications, excluding platforms like Canva and Notion that later added AI features, and traditional photo editors like Pixlr, Fotor, and PicsArt. A new "rising stars" list highlights 10 potential companies poised to enter the top 100, including Runway, Krea, and Lovable.
The report notes OpenAI's ChatGPT's strong growth, with its advanced voice modes and the debut of its first reasoning model, o1, doubling its user base. As of February 2025, it boasts 400 million weekly active users, double the number from six months prior. Mobile apps now account for nearly half of ChatGPT's users.
Deepseek's rapid rise to become the world's second most popular AI product is noteworthy. Backed by Chinese hedge fund High-Flyer, its widespread adoption in China is partly attributed to ChatGPT's ban in the country. Deepseek claims to achieve high performance at a lower training cost than competitors.
AI video generation emerges as a new growth category, with three new entrants in the top 50: China's Hailiao Technology and Kling AI, and OpenAI's recently launched Sora in Europe.
Furthermore, the report highlights growing interest in AI tools among developers and "vibecoders" (users who want to create using AI without traditional coding skills). Development environments with direct language model integration (like Cursor) and text-to-web platforms (like Bolt) are experiencing explosive growth. Tech-savvy users can even combine them, creating initial prototypes in Bolt and refining the code in Cursor.
From a revenue perspective, image and video editing tools account for 20% of consumer AI revenue, leading all other categories. a16z's report further points out that while some applications dominate in user numbers, they don't necessarily lead in revenue generation. For instance, video editing tools show different leaders in user count and revenue rankings. Niches like plant identification and nutrition apps, despite having fewer overall users, perform exceptionally well in revenue rankings. The report clearly illustrates the profound transformation underway in the consumer AI landscape, with AI-native applications replacing traditional models, and video generation and developer tools emerging as new growth engines.
