Forget Threads, this viral AI photo editing app is now on top of App Store; Know all about Remini

It looks like there is another favorite app in the town! After dominating the App Store's top apps listing for a few days, Meta’s Instagram-powered text-based platform Threads lost its top position to another contender. But interestingly, it was not a new app that beat it to the top, but instead, an app that has quietly existed since 2019 and all of a sudden exploded in popularity. The app in question is Remini, an AI photo editing app. So, why did it become so popular and highly rated now, in 2023? The answer is TikTok.

By now, no one is surprised at TikTok’s ability to make people, apps, songs, and even products go viral. The platform is accredited for launching the careers of rapper and singer Lil Nas X and Doja Cat, as well as creating globally viral trends like Dalgona Coffee, under-eye Vaseline, and the dance moves of Wednesday from the popular Netflix show of the same name. So, when TikTok found out about Remini, things were bound to go that way. But why now? Why all of a sudden?

Remini’s rise to the top

Remini launched as a simple photo editing app in 2019, and while it offered some interesting features, what made it stand out was its photo-enhancing capabilities. Users could submit a blurred or out-of-focus image and it could enhance to make the subject look clearer. The same could be done for old physical photos that have become a victim of overexposure. While this had made the app a popular option for those who were looking for a solution like this, Remini was far from becoming a household name like it is today.

Things changed for the platform after it added a generative AI feature in 2022, that can be used to create professional-looking headshots that you can use in your CV, portfolios, or even LinkedIn. And all you have to do is to upload a selfie.

And once the feature was discovered by a TikTok user and posted on the platform, everyone began doing the same, and soon, it turned into a challenge to see who can create the biggest transformation using the app.

Of course, the real winner here was Remini, which saw a massive spike in its download numbers. The data from app analytics firm Apptopia shows that the AI photo editor has witnessed more than 22 million downloads in the last 30 days, as per a report by TechCrunch. Further, the app has also recorded more than 20 million daily active users (DAU) on July 19 and 20.

The combined effort of this was that Remini quickly became the darling of TikTok and on July 11, it toppled Threads from its position. At present, Remini has a 4.6 rating on the App Store with over 124,000 reviews.

No doubt Remini is riding the social media wave, but the TikTok graveyard is filled with trends of the past, and that fate will also come for this app. What will be interesting is whether the company behind the app can use this momentum to further add more features to stay relevant and serve its customers, or if it will too vanish into mediocrity like many others.