❯ Nomura, Citing QuestMobile Data: ByteDance Accounts for 40.1% of User Time in China’s Top Apps, Crossing 40% for the First Time

CROSSING 40%ByteDance’s products account for 40.1% of user time among China’s top 50 apps, breaking past the 40% mark for the first time; Tencent’s ecosystem stands at 29.7%, with the gap widening to more than 10 percentage points. The figures follow Nomura Securities’ report “China Internet & New Media: June 2026 App Tracker,” citing QuestMobile methodology; these 50 apps cover roughly 93% of mobile internet usage time.

ATTENTION FIRSTThe report shows that time-spend advantages are being converted directly into AI product installs. A year earlier, the time-spend gap between the two companies was still in single digits. On QuestMobile’s June ranking of domestic AI-native apps by MAU, ByteDance’s Doubao ranked first by a wide margin with 382 million MAU, up 172.1% year over year — the only first-tier product with MAU above the 100-million level; average monthly usage per person was 76.7 sessions and 143.7 minutes, both above the industry average. This chain explains the shape of the leaderboard: it’s not model capability that widened the gap, but existing entry points like Douyin and Toutiao funneling users directly into the new products.

DISTRIBUTION PREMIUMBy the methodology of this Nomura report, other Chinese model vendors need to reassess customer acquisition costs. In a market where the leading player holds 40% of attention, the window for breaking out on product strength alone is far narrower than before — the same feature, embedded in Douyin versus a standalone app, carries an order-of-magnitude difference in reach cost. Ad budgets will therefore shift from new-user acquisition to retention earlier.

▪ SIGNALWhat’s valuable is that 40.1% — model generations turn over fast, but where users spend their time moves slowly.