a16z: AI doubles app supply but users and revenue haven't caught up
xiaohu · x · 2026-09-21
Citing a16z, the author notes AI has exploded app supply without matching users or revenue: since Feb 2025, monthly new iOS apps rose from 30-50k to 120k, Chrome extensions from 3k to 20k+, Android rebounded to 100k.
Meanwhile the broader market contracts: game playtime down 3% and revenue 15%, lifestyle revenue 30%, books 40%. Gains from a few top AI apps are partly offset by declines in mature categories — growth concentrates in a few winners.
Related event: AI App Supply Surges 2-4x, Yet Only 3% of Consumers Pay(3 posts)→
More from Venture
- China's top AI labs raised ~$35B in five months; combined haul could hit $60B by 2027 — FinanceYF5 · 2026-09-21
- AI is making startups harder, not easier — picking the right idea is everything — 0xsachi · 2026-09-21
- PAW critique continued: burying the GitHub repo undermines pre-product-market-fit growth — willcb · 2026-09-21
- 'Spray-and-pray marketing reads as desperate': dev critique of 1M-view demo that converted no users — willcb · 2026-09-21
- Kaijubeam launches: swap useful feedback to build a launch crew for your next release — tibo_maker · 2026-09-21
- Get paid for Claude Code sessions: open-source CLI Trajector buys your coding trajectories — aliscodes · 2026-09-21