In addition to short-video app TikTok, ByteDance has a lesser-known but also popular sister app in the U.S.: CapCut.
Caption: Video editing application CapCut
CapCut, a video editing tool that helps people quickly create online videos and memes, has seen more downloads in recent weeks than TikTok, which is under scrutiny in the United States over user data. CapCut allows people to edit videos easily with various templates, filters, visual effects and music.
Users say CapCut helps them create more professional-looking videos that are more likely to go viral on Meta’s Instagram and Google’s YouTube.
Launched in 2020, CapCut has seized the opportunity of the wave of short videos. Shanghai-based mobile app analytics platform Diandian Data says CapCut currently has more than 200 million monthly active users. By comparison, TikTok has more than 1 billion users worldwide.
CapCut soared to the top of the app store charts late last year and hovered near the top of the weekly U.S. app download charts, according to app trackers such as Sensor Tower. In addition, a wave of other Chinese apps have continued to top the U.S. app charts, including TikTok, cross-border shopping platform Temu and Shein.
Global downloads of CapCut grew 43 percent last year to more than 400 million, according to Sensor Tower. About 7% of CapCut’s global downloads since last year came from the United States.
In its privacy policy, CapCut said that in order to provide its services, it collects content such as photos and videos uploaded by users, as well as data such as user location, gender and birthday, which is common in video editing tools. CapCut said it stores this data in the United States and Singapore, like TikTok. The app declined further comment.
