Hongguo surpasses Doubao to become Douyin's second largest app

According to a report by East Money on November 4, 2026, data from QuestMobile's China Mobile Internet Autumn Report shows that as of September 2026, the top three apps within Douyin Group had become Douyin, Hongguo Free Short Drama, and Doubao, with de-duplicated total user bases of 1.029 billion, 430 million, and 419 million respectively. Hongguo has officially surpassed Doubao to become Douyin Group's second-largest application. Separately, data from iiMedia Research indicates that China's micro-short drama market grew from CNY 940 million in 2020 to CNY 50.44 billion in 2024, reached CNY 67.79 billion in 2025, and is projected at CNY 79.33 billion for 2026 and CNY 150.59 billion for 2030. In overseas markets, CCTV Finance reports that around ten Chinese companies have already established overseas short drama platforms, with another fifteen or so overseas short drama apps having launched dedicated AI man-drama channels. Active users of AI man-dramas in overseas markets have exceeded 150 million overall, and Chinese companies occupy nine of the top ten paid overseas short drama apps. On the production side, the cost of AI film and video production is falling sharply. The minimum production cost of a domestic AI man-drama is currently CNY 350 per minute, and the production cycle for a single man-drama has shortened significantly from earlier levels. The report notes that AI film and video content is extending from short dramas and man-dramas into medium and longer-form dramas and theatrical films.