- India is the world’s leading country in app downloads
- General AI apps were downloaded 602 million times last year
- A significant increase in downloads of grocery delivery apps as well
Generative Artificial Intelligence Rapid adoption of (AI) has made India the world leader in app downloads. 25.5 billion app downloads are projected in the country by 2025, the highest globally. Importantly, India is one of the few countries to experience growth in app downloads every year. The number of downloads was 25.9 billion in 2023, and 24.6 billion in 2024, according to Sensor Tower’s State of Mobile 2026 report. Accordingly, user engagement in app downloads has increased.
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Indians spent 12.3 trillion hours on apps last year, up from 11.3 trillion hours in 2024. According to the report, the rise of general AI and microdrama apps (short video apps with one or two minute episodes on smartphones) have changed download and engagement trends in India. As a result, Indians downloaded general AI apps 602 million times last year, a three-fold increase from 198 million times in 2024. Microdrama also played a major role in increasing app downloads in India, surpassing OTT. More than 350 million microdrama apps were downloaded in 2025. (Photo Courtesy – Pinterest)
Apps like Kookoo TV, Story TV, Quick TV and Dashreel took the lead. Downloads of AI assistants, video editing, social discovery, and food and grocery delivery apps also grew significantly. However, downloads of social media, social messaging and security apps declined in the country. Data shows that users worldwide spent a total of 5.3 trillion hours on apps last year. The biggest share of this time was gaming apps. Categories like social media, short dramas and AI apps also managed to capture the attention of users.
Not even in the top 20 countries
According to reports, people in India download more mobile apps and spend more time on them than anywhere else in the world. However, India lags significantly when it comes to in-app purchases. India is not even in the top 20 countries in terms of revenue from in-app purchases. Globally, IAP revenue grew 13% to $150 billion. America ($52 billion) and China ($25 billion) took the lead.
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ChatGPT Most Downloaded
According to the report, AI assistant apps played a major role in the increase in downloads. The most downloaded Gen AI app in India was ChatGPT, followed by Google Gemini, Pplaxity and Gonke. According to the report, ChatGPT is only behind Instagram in terms of total app downloads in the country in 2025. Sensor Tower’s quarterly data also shows that AI assistant downloads grew rapidly in the second half of 2025, much higher than other generative AI categories such as AI content generators and AI companion apps.
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