The State of Apps with Olivia Moore

A few weeks ago, Apple released a stunning statistic: they’ve paid developers over $320B — yes, billion! — since the launch of the App Store in 2008, highlighting the cast opportunity in the marketplace. And around the same time, a16z Consumer Partner, Olivia Moore, compiled a list of the top apps across the US app store throughout 2022. In this episode, you’ll get to hear which apps made it to the top and what they have in common. Hint: the big winners were in social, but perhaps a new wave of social apps! We also get the scoop on what it really takes to not just hit #1, but stay there. This episode highlights numerous surprising examples ranging from a new-age Beanie Baby app, a viral talking dog, an app from 2012 that finally broke the top 10, and the Chinese app that’s been at #1 for a majority of 2023, and it’s not TIkTok! There are endless learnings about how new founders can take advantage of these opportunities. Timestamps: 00:00 - Top apps in 2022 03:23 - A new era of social? 06:55 - Hitting #1 08:57 - Staying on top 10:43 - Building a sticky product 13:29 - Growing an app in 2023 14:57 - User-generated growth 17:07 - 2022 category winners 20:00 - Anonymous social 21:37 - Early monetization 25:45 - Monetization trends 30:27 - Leveraging platform shifts 34:58 - Surprising hits 37:21 - Looking toward 2023 39:09 - Invisible AI products 41:19 - Limiting virality 44:43 - Vertical social networks 48:16 - When digital goes physical 51:19 - TikTok growth 53:01 - Geographic trends 55:33 - A decade old app 59:58 - App challenge Resources: * Follow Olivia on Twitter: https://twitter.com/omooretweets * Olivia's 2022 analysis: https://twitter.com/omooretweets/status/1605983056682045440 * Olivia's 2021 analysis: https://twitter.com/omooretweets/status/1483482099562602500 * Justine’s Boating app commentary: https://twitter.com/venturetwins/status/1616121691830390784 * Olivia’s Tinder subscription commentary: https://twitter.com/omooretweets/status/1616480480546942976 Apps mentioned: * BeReal: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/bereal-your-friends-for-real/id1459645446 * TikTok: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/tiktok/id835599320 * Gas App: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/gas/id1641791746 * Talking Ben the Dog: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/talking-ben-the-dog/id416345319 * Argo Boating Navigation: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/argo-boating-navigation/id1463869636 * NoteIt: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/noteit-widget-get-it-now/id1570369625 * Locket Widget: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/locket-widget/id1600525061 * LiveIn: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/livein-share-your-moment/id1606780589 * Slay: https://apps.apple.com/de/app/slay-komplimente-umfragen/id1645858841 * Lensa AI: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/lensa-photo-editing/id1436732536 * Starlink: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/starlink/id1537177988 * NOAA Weather: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/noaa-weather/id436760574 * Stardust Period Tracker: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/stardust-period-tracker/id1495829322 * Temu: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/temu-team-up-price-down/id1641486558 * SquadApp: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/squadapp-collection-database/id1623120952 * TravelBoast: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/travelboast-my-journey-routes/id1476504378 * Subway Surfers: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/subway-surfers/id512939461 Stay Updated: Find a16z on Twitter: https://twitter.com/a16z Find a16z on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/a16z Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: https://a16z.simplecast.com/ Follow our host: https://twitter.com/stephsmithio Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.