Google will soon bring YouTube Create exclusively to iOS, two years after it launched the Android-only video editor app. TechCrunch’s review of job postings revealed that Google is actively seeking engineers to work on the iOS project in India.
It is important to note that the word “you” means “me”. job postings Google recruits software engineers specifically in Bengaluru for the iOS version. Original Android App debuted In September 2023 the U.S., and 7 other markets will be expanded. 13 more markets Before February 2024
YouTube Create is a free app that offers mobile editing tools for video content creators. It includes features such as stickers, GIFs and effects, for YouTube Shorts or longer videos. Google created the app following consultations with over 3,000 content creators.
Google has created YouTube Create to challenge ByteDance CapCut’s editor. Sensor Tower exclusive data provided to TechCrunch shows that YouTube Create is far behind CapCut, and InShot.
Competition is not close. In the first quarter of 2016, CapCut was downloaded by Android users 66,000,000 times. InShot had 21,000,000 downloads. YouTube Create on the other had fewer than 500 downloads during this quarter and only 4 million since it was launched.
Even more so, the gap between user engagement and other metrics is pronounced. CapCut claims more than 442 million Android users in Q2 while InShot has 92. YouTube Create is far behind, with less than 1 million active monthly users.
On iOS — the platform YouTube Create is now targeting — the competition is just as fierce. CapCut has 194,000,000 monthly active users and InShot is second with 25,000,000. CapCut, Instagram’s Edit, and InShot have all dominated iOS app downloads in the second quarter with 28 and 7 millions downloads respectively.
Sensor Tower’s data shows that despite its low numbers, YouTube Create has some momentum. It grew by 28% in terms of monthly active users year over year in Q2, compared to CapCut, which grew by 9%, and InShot declined by 7%.
“While boasting solid user growth on a year-over-year basis, YouTube Create has struggled to keep up with some of its larger, more established peers such as CapCut, with the latter having more than 10x the number of monthly active users,” Abe Yousef said, Senior Insights Analyst at Sensor Tower.
Yousef said that YouTube Create could be building up a loyal following of users. The rising number of active users and the declining numbers of downloads may indicate that those who have previously used this app will be returning regularly.
“CapCut coming out many years ago, coupled with the fact that it’s seamlessly integrated with its sister app, TikTok, likely plays into this material size difference with YouTube Create,” Yousef
YouTube Create still has some issues with retention. Its 90-day retention rate — the percentage of users who downloaded the app and still use it 90 days later — was roughly 1% in Q1, far below CapCut’s 7% and InShot’s 4%.
The engagement metrics also highlight this gap. CapCut users spend 62 minutes a month in comparison to 38 minutes on YouTube Create. CapCut app users open it more frequently, with an average of 23 sessions per month compared to 11 sessions for YouTube Create.
YouTube Create users are diversifying geographically. India accounted for 67% of all monthly active YouTube Create users in the second half of 2012, but this share is down to just 51% now as YouTube Create gains popularity elsewhere. YouTube Create seems to be growing in India. Daily-to-monthly ratios of active users have improved, from 9% last to so far 12% this.
Indonesia, which represents 21% the global number of monthly active users, is YouTube Create’s next-largest country. Germany (5%) is the second-largest market, followed by Brazil (4%) and the UK (3%).
App users in other countries are also growing rapidly, including in Spain and South Korea. In France, they have increased by 89%, while in Singapore, the increase is 71%.
“An iOS release of YouTube Create could absolutely help the platform grow its market share, though fierce competition in the space both from other social media-backed video editing platforms and native video editors will persist,” Yousef said.
Google has not responded to any requests for comments.
