New Delhi: Google Gemini has officially taken the top spot on the Google Play Store, surpassing ChatGPT as the most downloaded app. This rapid ascent is largely due to the viral success of its Nano Banana AI image-editing feature, which combines powerful AI conversation abilities with creative visual tools. This dual appeal has attracted millions of new users, showcasing a shift in how people are engaging with AI applications.
The app’s quick rise highlights the intense competition in the AI chatbot market, where companies are constantly innovating to capture user attention. Gemini’s success, particularly with Nano Banana, demonstrates how a clever, easy-to-use feature can significantly boost an app’s popularity and user adoption, setting a new benchmark for consumer-facing AI.
Made it to no.1 in the App Store. Congrats to the @GeminiApp team for all their hard work, and this is just the start, so much more to come! https://t.co/GbSDPX64mY
— Demis Hassabis (@demishassabis) September 13, 2025
Nano Banana’s Meteoric Rise and User Adoption
Since its launch on August 26, Gemini has seen remarkable growth. By September 9, just two weeks later, the app had added an impressive 23 million new users. At the heart of this rapid expansion is the Nano Banana feature, which allows users to create lifelike 3D-style figurines, customize visuals, and refine images with high precision. Its simplicity and viral nature quickly made Gemini one of the most talked-about AI tools of 2025.
The “Nano Banana” tool sparked social media trends, reminiscent of the Ghibli Studio trend that boosted ChatGPT’s engagement last summer. One popular trend involves users transforming their photos into hyper-realistic 3D figurines, complete with acrylic bases and collector-style packaging, simply by uploading an image and providing a prompt in the Gemini app. This trend has captivated both public figures and everyday users, particularly in India, where politicians and celebrities have also joined in, leading to millions of images being created.
Key Features Driving Nano Banana’s Popularity
The Nano Banana feature is more than just a trend starter. It allows for the generation, modification, and personalization of images while consistently maintaining the subject’s likeness across various edits. Users can perform style transfers, combine multiple photographs, or manipulate images using simple conversational prompts. This versatility has been a major factor in its social media success, with creators collectively generating millions of outputs in a very short time frame.
Google reported that over 500 million images were processed through Nano Banana within its first two weeks. The sheer volume and speed of usage underscore both the feature’s accessibility and its viral momentum across popular platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and X.
Accessibility and Market Position
To cater to a wide user base, Google has implemented a tiered access model. Free users can generate or edit up to 100 images daily, while paid subscribers, starting at $19.99 per month, can process up to 1,000 images per day. This approach has made Gemini an attractive option, contributing significantly to its adoption rates and positioning it favorably against competing AI apps.
Gemini now holds the number-one position in the United States, ahead of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which is in second place, and Meta’s Threads, ranking third. Demis Hassabis, CEO of Google DeepMind, celebrated the Gemini team on social media, proclaiming that this was “just the start.”