Global Apps in March 2023: AI Trends and Writing Assistants

The analysis of global non‑game mobile apps for March 2023 reveals a continued dominance of AI‑driven tools and regionally focused entertainment services. Grammarly, the leading English writing assistant, doubled its advertising spend with a 96 % month‑over‑month increase in ad creatives, targeting Canada, the US, Australia and the UK across medical, word, board and racing media. The campaign highlighted new generative‑AI features in GrammarlyGo, emphasizing workplace writing scenarios and using keywords such as “free,” “mistake” and “reports.” Phone Doctor, a phone‑cleaning utility, also raised its ad output by 44 % MoM, focusing on Southeast Asian and North American markets through Facebook News Feed and Instagram.

Revenue growth was most pronounced for content‑delivery apps tied to cultural events. Shahid, an Arabic VOD service, saw a 51 % rise in revenue driven by Ramadan‑related demand, while F1TV’s streaming of the Formula One season generated a 208 % MoM revenue jump, largely from India. Strava’s fitness‑tracking platform recorded a 69 % increase, with significant contributions from India, Brazil and Indonesia. Life360 also posted a 27 % revenue rise, mainly from the US.

Download momentum was strongest for proxy and streaming apps. FlyProxy’s downloads surged 110 % MoM, with 76 % originating from India, and Q Proxy experienced a staggering 1,195 % increase, largely from Indian and Pakistani users. Amazon Prime Video and Brazil’s gov.br platform also posted double‑digit download gains, underscoring the importance of localized content and utility services in driving global app adoption.