3 years on, WeChat’s ‘instant apps’ have changed the internet

In late 2016, WeChat was already so dominant in China that people spent 35% of their phone time in it – more than any other app.

That’s when the popular messaging app began testing “Mini Programs” – instant apps that don’t need to be installed and which work only within WeChat.

Image credit: Tech in Asia / Centaine Lim

Soon after the Mini Program framework was launched, major brands like McDonalds, Mobike, and Didi Chuxing rolled out their own instant apps, showing just how useful they could be – easily discoverable from within their WeChat brands or by scanning a QR code in the real world. For example, Burger King stores in China have an “order online” poster on the door. A quick scan allows customers to order in the chain’s instant app so they don’t have to queue up.

Millions and millions

Huge brands and small developers alike have now created around 2 million WeChat instant apps, and they’re used by 350 million people each day. A full 63% of WeChat users have made use of an instant app at some point.

They’re as full-featured as the average app. For instance, Adidas’ WeChat instant app for its store has categories, search, and a cart – just as you’d expect from a shopping app:

Image credit: Tech in Asia

That 2 million tally is close to surpassing the 2.2 million iOS apps in Apple’s own store.

Three years on, it’s safe to say that WeChat’s instant apps have changed the face of the internet in its home nation.

WeChat’s instant apps have contributed to the continuing rise in its user base, which is now at 1.1 billion. But the bigger impact is that for some people, WeChat is the web. There’s no longer a need for a web browser or an app store.

Without exiting the WeChat app, a user in China could grab a bicycle from Ofo, buy their morning coffee and accrue loyalty points, order lunch via Meituan, do some online shopping on JD.com, navigate somewhere with the aid of a subway app, get a daily deal discount for dinner from Meituan-Dianping, and then go home in a Didi car.

That’s the definition of a “super app.”

Rivals copy

Early concerns about excessive mobile data usage have not proved to be an issue, and WeChat maker Tencent – China’s top social and gaming company – has gradually catered to the rise of instant apps by making them easier to search and then creating a drop-down drawer so they’re easier to find. Later, Tencent added instant games as well.

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