Rapid Rise to the Top of the App Store
The latest version of Google’s Gemini app rocketed to number one on Apple’s free App Store list, pushing long‑time leader ChatGPT into second place. The catalyst was the introduction of Nano Banana, officially dubbed Gemini 2.5 Flash Image, which rolled out on August 26, 2025. Within two weeks the app jumped from the AI‑apps sub‑ranking to claim the overall top spot on September 12, and it held that position through September 13.
Appfigures data shows the app edging toward 13 million total iOS downloads, a 45 percent month‑over‑month jump from the 9 million downloads recorded in August. Google’s own VP of Gemini and Google Labs, Josh Woodward, disclosed that 23 million first‑time users joined the platform between the Nano Banana launch and September 9. Those newcomers collectively generated more than 500 million images using the new model.
Beyond the United States, the momentum is global. Gemini sits inside the top five iOS charts in 108 countries, holding the second slot in both Canada and the United Kingdom. Interestingly, on Google Play the AI‑apps category still favours ChatGPT, underscoring a divergence between Android and iOS user preferences.
- Nearly 104 million total downloads in 2025 across iOS and Android.
- Over 185 million cumulative installs since the app’s debut in February 2024.
- More than 500 million images created in just two weeks after Nano Banana’s release.
- 23 million new users acquired in a 15‑day window.
Why Nano Banana Is Reshaping Consumer AI
Nano Banana isn’t just another text‑to‑image engine. It excels at preserving character likeness across multiple generations, meaning a person or product stays recognisable while backgrounds, outfits, hairstyles and other elements shift. This consistency makes the tool ideal for marketers, influencers and everyday users who want to remix a single photo into a series of fresh visuals.
Google deliberately set usage caps that match real‑world demand. Free users receive only five chat prompts per day but get 100 free image generations daily—a figure that jumps to 1,000 for paid subscribers at $19.99 a month. According to David Sharon, Multimodal Generation Lead for Gemini Apps, the limit reflects a clear user preference: people are far more excited about creating images than typing lengthy conversations.
The model’s accessibility is another driver. Nano Banana works with simple uploads; users can feed multiple photos, transfer styles between them, or ask the AI to turn a selfie into a toy‑like 3D figurine with a single command. No advanced prompting knowledge is required, and results appear within seconds—perfect for social‑media sharing or rapid marketing copy.
Feature highlights include:
- Style transfer that can morph a daytime shot into a night‑time cinematic scene.
- Background replacement while keeping the subject’s proportions intact.
- Batch processing that lets users upload a set of images and receive a cohesive series of variations.
- Conversational editing, where users can ask the AI to refine a generated image step by step.
The surge in Gemini’s rankings suggests that visual creativity is eclipsing pure chat‑based interactions for mainstream users. As more people discover the fun of instant image remixing, the line between professional design tools and consumer apps continues to blur. Nano Banana’s success could signal the next wave of AI‑powered applications—tools that prioritize quick, shareable visual output over lengthy text dialogues.
