Non-gaming apps overtook gaming in 2025 app store revenue, driven by rapid adoption of AI-powered and generative AI applications.
AI and game design are converging to create “AI Apps 2.0,” enabling highly personalized, adaptive experiences and unlocking a projected $112B market by 2031.
Strong investor momentum is building, with $20.7B already deployed since 2020 and private market activity expected to reach $50B in the next five years.
India’s Consumer Apps Turn to Gaming Playbook to Boost Revenue: Report
By 2035, the firm expects at least five non-gaming consumer companies worth more than $10B to exist that do not exist today
Summary
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In 2025, non-gaming apps across sectors surpassed gaming apps in global app store revenue for the first time, fueled by the growing integration of AI-powered gaming elements that are reshaping user engagement and monetisation strategies across these platforms, said a new report by BITKRAFT Ventures.
“The shift was driven by the rapid adoption of AI-powered applications. Generative AI became the top revenue-growth category in mobile, with revenue tripling to more than $5B. At the core of this transformation is a fundamental behavioural shift,” added the report.
The report underlined how artificial intelligence and game design principles are converging to reshape the next generation of consumer applications and unlock a projected $112 billion market by 2031.
According to the report, gamified consumer apps have generated $20.7B in private market transactions since 2020, across 208 deals.
“Gaming is not just the largest entertainment sector; it is the foundational design language for the next generation of consumer experiences. AI has made it possible for any founder to build the kind of adaptive, personalised product that once required a studio-scale budget. The founders who combine game-design thinking with AI-native infrastructure will build the most consequential consumer companies of this decade,” said Jens Hilgers, Founding General Partner, BITKRAFT Ventures
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Earlier, creating personalised, game-like experiences required big budgets and large teams. Today, even small startups can build them.
“This has led to a new category called ‘AI Apps 2.0’ apps that learn from users, adapt in real time, and become more engaging with every use,” said the BITKRAFT report.
The report argues that the consumer companies make up about 20% of all unicorns, they receive less than 10% of venture funding.
BITKRAFT expects private market activity in this space to reach $50 billion within five years, across multiple sectors.
By 2035, the firm expects at least five non-gaming consumer companies worth more than $10B to exist that do not exist today.
BITKRAFT Ventures is a global investment platform at the intersection of games, immersive technology, digital assets, and AI. With over $1B in assets under management and more than 130 portfolio companies, BITKRAFT is built by founders for founders.
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