Chinese tool apps.
from outfit swap filters to calorie trackers now are among the top downloads in Southeast Asia,
Latin America, and beyond.
But the challenge looms.
In markets with such different tastes, can they stay on top?
Coming to you live from Beijing, this is Roundtable.
I'm He Yang.
For today's program, I'm joined by Steve Hatherly and Yu Shun in the studio.
First on today's show.
Today,
Chinese tool apps from one-click outfit changers that let you try new looks instantly to plant identifiers that tell you what's growing in your backyard to calorie trackers helping you stay on top of your health are topping download charts from Southeast Asia to Latin America.
But the playbook has evolved since the early days of the 2010s.
Rather than chasing one... all-in-one blockbuster app,
developers are rolling out a whole portfolio of smaller niche apps,
each solving a very specific real-life problem.
Before we dive into their global success, let's clarify what constitutes a tool app.
I think, Cleon, you have already explained quite clearly about what...
is a tool app so they are that kind of lightweight efficiency driven applications designed to solve maybe very specific problems or boost productivity and they often focus on a single core function such as
as you said health and wellness tracking like detect and track your sleep your fitness records and your calories also identification apps like identifying the plants animals or even objects like banknotes also image and video editing apps
like you can create a ai avatar you can have different filters have your lipsticks and eyelashes on just with a simple filter and also document system utilities like um your file cleaners calculators that kind of thing so by targeting clear user pain points with that kind of practical features.