ByteDance announced that its overseas AI assistant app Dola has exceeded 10 million daily active users, marking significant international growth for the Chinese tech giant’s artificial intelligence products.
The company disclosed the milestone on December 31, 2025, as the app gains traction in emerging markets across Southeast Asia and Latin America. Dola offers conversational question-and-answer capabilities, writing assistance, translation, and image generation, positioning itself on Google Play as an “all-in-one assistant for writing, thinking, and creativity.”
Evolution and Rebranding
Dola originated as Cici, an AI assistant launched by ByteDance in August 2023 that primarily targeted emerging markets including the Philippines, Indonesia, and Latin America. The app’s design closely resembled ByteDance’s domestic AI assistant Doubao, with the main visual distinction being icon hair length.
The service was officially rebranded as Dola by the end of 2025 as part of what appears to be a strategic repositioning in the competitive global AI assistant market.
Regional Growth
According to sources familiar with the matter, Dola has experienced rapid growth in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Mexico since the second half of 2025. Third-party data indicates that since October, Dola has ranked among the top 20 free app downloads on Google Play in Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, and the United Kingdom.
The app achieved particular success in Mexico, where it maintained a week-long streak as the number one daily download, demonstrating strong regional adoption.
Domestic Success
The international milestone comes as ByteDance’s domestic AI assistant Doubao has surpassed 100 million daily active users, making it China’s first independent AI application to reach this threshold. The dual success in domestic and international markets demonstrates ByteDance’s expanding presence in the AI assistant sector.
However, the company faces intensifying competition in global markets from established players including OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini, among other rivals.
Competitive Challenges
Industry observers note that Dola will need to develop differentiated features and strengthen localized capabilities to maintain user engagement and compete effectively against well-established alternatives. The AI assistant market has become increasingly crowded, with major technology companies investing heavily in conversational AI products.
ByteDance has not disclosed specific strategies for distinguishing Dola from competitors or detailed plans for expansion into additional markets.
The 10 million daily active user milestone represents a significant achievement for ByteDance’s international AI ambitions, though it remains substantially smaller than the company’s domestic user base and faces the challenge of competing against AI assistants from American technology giants with established global presence.
Source: https://modernaitoday.com/bytedances-dola-ai-assistant-surpasses-10-million-daily-active-users/
