Meta's newest AI app, Muse, has rocketed to the top of the app stores with one of the fastest launches the company has ever orchestrated — and it did so in the same week it held its annual Meta Connect developer conference. The app launched on September 8 and by Friday, September 18, had climbed to number one on the U.S. App Store, where it has remained ever since. It reached the top of the Google Play Store on September 19.
Download Numbers and Growth Rate
According to market intelligence firm Sensor Tower, Muse had surpassed 2.5 million downloads by the start of the week of the Meta Connect conference and had amassed more than 3.4 million by Thursday's estimates. Other firms put the numbers higher: Apptopia estimates total downloads at 4.3 million, with 2.6 million on iOS alone. Appfigures reports roughly 2.3 million as of Thursday, split almost evenly between iOS and Android. Muse is currently available only in the United States and Canada.
What is striking is the pace. During its first two weeks on the app stores, Muse averaged 55% day-over-day download growth. For comparison, ChatGPT averaged 24% day-over-day growth during its first ten days after launch. Downloads for Claude and Grok actually declined during their respective launches.
What Meta Connect Added
The conference served as a significant accelerant. At Meta Connect, the company announced a slate of upcoming features for Muse, including video chat with the Muse avatar, support for computer use on the Mac, a dedicated email address, additional partners and connectors, and plans for smart glasses integration.
Sensor Tower data shows that Muse's daily active users climbed 27% on the Wednesday after the conference concluded. The bump suggests that the announcements — and the media attention they generated — translated directly into engagement rather than just awareness.
How Meta Is Promoting It
Meta is leaning on the same cross-platform promotional machinery that helped Instagram Threads reach 500 million monthly active users: pushing the app to its existing Facebook and Instagram user base. But the approach differs in one key way. Connor Hayes, Meta's Head of Threads, told Business Insider that while Threads promotions could match user-generated content to individual interests, Muse requires something different — promotional units that showcase what the AI agent can actually do for a specific user.
Meta rolled out house ads promoting Muse on September 9, the day after launch. Within ten days, Muse had absorbed the majority of house advertising promotions across Meta's entire property portfolio, surpassing promotions for Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. The company has also begun buying ads on mobile ad networks and third-party social platforms including Reddit, TikTok, and YouTube. By Tuesday, September 22, Muse ranked among the top ten brands by advertising spend, according to Sensor Tower.
Even with that aggressive push, paid advertising accounted for only 6% of the ad impressions Muse received from launch through September 19. The bulk of its growth remains organic, driven by word of mouth and the novelty of a consumer-facing AI agent from a major social media company.
What Comes Next
Muse's rapid ascent raises a question that has dogged consumer AI apps since ChatGPT's breakout: can initial momentum sustain itself? The app's polished design and the underlying model capability have earned positive early reviews. Meta has signaled a continued investment in features — particularly the computer-use and smart-glasses integrations that would extend Muse beyond the phone screen into the physical world. Whether that roadmap can keep users engaged after the launch hype fades is the open variable.