"This App Is Called Openart": a Swedish personal account siphoned search traffic from a company making $70M a year
What it is A generic AI image-generation subscription app, its name borrowing openart.ai. It has nothing to do with the real OpenArt.
Why it took off The real OpenArt is big and buys heavy creator promotion on TikTok, but it has no mobile app. This one uses the name "Openart AI" and localizes it into 19 languages, capturing App Store search traffic for the brand term.
CHow you could follow it Don't use the same name. Learn the signal: look for AI brands with big websites, no app, and heavy TikTok creator spend, then go after their category terms and "alternative" keywords, or pursue an official mobile client license.
- Data (updated daily) · launched 2026-09-08 · US store rating 99 · charted in 11-08 of 74 stores
iOS · best category chart rank · by store US storeCanadaAustraliaData 2026-10-28 → 2026-11-08 (12 days, 12 observations). Lower rank is higher; gaps mean it wasn't charted that dayiOS · rating count · US store Data 2026-10-28 → 2026-11-08 (12 days, 12 observations). Apple doesn't publish download counts; rating growth is a proxy for downloads.
Openart AI Art & Image Maker is an ordinary AI image-generation app on the App Store, listed in Sep 8 by a Swedish individual account named Malin Ekengren. It has nothing to do with the real OpenArt (openart.ai). But the real OpenArt has no mobile app and hired a crowd of TikTok creators to say "go use OpenArt", so people who searched "openart" in the store on their phones installed this one instead. Below: how this term got left open, how much it captured, and whether the route is worth your time.
Sep 21, the title of a TikTok video
Sep 21, TikTok user angela_secretacc0 posted a video titled with one line: "The app is called Openart". Nov 4, another account licker_jr wrote: "Download open art it's free", download open art, it's free.
Both lines push the real OpenArt, but the real OpenArt is web-only. Its help center says "OpenArt works on desktop and mobile browsers" (openart.ai/help, 11-06), and third-party reviews say it still has no iOS or Android app. Viewers who want to "download" it search openart in the App Store, and the first screen shows several apps with Openart in the name, sandwiched between Grok and ChatGPT. None of them is official.
This app is one of them.
What it is
The features are a standard wrapper: type a description, pick a style, get an image in seconds; an Inspiration page shows other users' works and prompts you can copy with one tap; there's a history log. Weekly, monthly, and yearly tiers auto-renew. The privacy policy sits in a Google Doc, and the bundle name is com.maleke.starweaver, unrelated to "Openart".
Where it put the most care is the name. The app is localized into 19 languages, with the name localized per storefront: German is "Openart AI Kunst & Bildmacher", Japanese is "Openart AI アート＆画像メーカー", and the Korean and Traditional Chinese storefronts are translated too, but the leading "Openart AI" is left untouched in every one.
How much it ran: not much, but steadily
- Ratings count: across all storefronts, 10-28 was 82 and 11-06 is now 172. It more than doubled in 10 days, adding 8 to 14 a day, with no single-day spike. The US store went from 42 to 88 ratings (the Apple API 11-06 shows 90 ratings, 4.13 stars).
- Charts: Every day it sits on the Graphics & Design category chart in 57 to 75 countries. In the US store, the category Top Free ranks #66–83 and Top Grossing #59–89. Qatar's category Top Grossing hit #5, Ghana, India, Israel and Finland hit #17–18, and Australia hit #29 (11-06). It never charted on the overall chart in any store.
- Revenue: AppSprint estimates about 1,000 downloads a month and about $1,000 in revenue a month (11-06, model estimate).
The Graphics & Design category has a very low bar in small countries. A few dozen downloads can get you into the top 20. So "charted in 72 countries" looks impressive, but in money terms it's side-project scale.
The rating curve is this flat, which suggests the traffic isn't bought for chart-climbing. More likely a fixed group of people searches the same term every day (inference).
Why that search term sits empty
The real OpenArt is not a small company. In 2026 January 30 it raised a $30M Series A led by Canaan, when it had 8M monthly active users, over $70M in annualized revenue and a team of 20 (Canaan blog). Sacra says its annualized revenue reached $100M by June.
A large part of its growth comes from a TikTok affiliate network. Search "openart app" and you get a wall of videos with #openartpartner and #sidehustle, all with nearly identical pitches about making money on the side with OpenArt: faith.trades, 23 with 197k views (9-15); madebykbb, 35k (7-03); ryn.does.it, "had to dumb OpenArt down for some people", 7,946 views (10-08). People were still posting on Nov 5.
The people watching these videos are on their phones and say "app", but the official product has no phone app. The download intent OpenArt paid for has nothing to catch it at the App Store door.
It isn't the only one catching it
Several apps are already lined up under the same term:
| App | Developer | Launched | US ratings | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AI Art Generator - OpenArt | DMU Software | 2022-11 | 526(3.80) | The earliest one puts OpenArt after its name |
| Openart AI - Photo Generator | FROUK TOV | 2026-04 | 92(3.27) | Bundle ID com.FileFlexPDF15kl.app, and the description still carries the old name "Imagify AI". It's a rebranded app dressed up as something else. |
| Openart AI Prompt to Image | Ana Ceban | 2026-07 | 1 | Bundle ID com.anaceb.geneartisan. It uses the same naming pattern as this app (initials plus a fantasy word), and its privacy policy is hosted on Google Docs. It may be another listing from the same operator (inference). |
| Openart AI Video Art Generator | Bobby Preston | 2026-08 | 280(4.39) | Launched three weeks earlier, bigger, and video-focused |
| Openart AI Art & Image Maker | Malin Ekengren | 2026-09 | 90(4.13) | This one |
Google Play also has an Open Art Ai Studio (ILORE LIMITED) with about 9,000 installs.
On features, it has no edge over ChatGPT, Gemini or Grok's built-in image generation, or over legitimate AI-art apps in the category like DaVinci (HUBX, 75k ratings). Its only win is that its name matches the search term.
What users say
All three reviews I can see are 1 stars:
"I bought on web browser but can not log in on app". Bought on the web, can't log in on the app. Canada, 10-20
"This was a sad waste of money. I demand a refund". Australia, 10-24
"Pessima qualità". Terrible quality. Italy, 10-29
The first one is the most interesting. One explanation is that the developer runs a web-payment funnel that pushes users into the app. The other is that this user really paid on openart.ai, assumed this was the official app, and of course couldn't log in after installing it. The second fits the whole picture better, but I can't confirm it (inference).
US store average rating 4.1. Every visible review is 1 stars, and the average has slid from 4.26 down to 4.11. Early on, there was probably a batch of incentivized five-star reviews (inferred, not verified).
If it were you
Verdict: Don't copy this app. Hijacking another brand's name is a grey tactic. There are already 5 listings splitting this term, worth roughly $1,000 a month, and two things could zero it out at any time: OpenArt sending a trademark complaint, or OpenArt shipping its own app.
The signal is what's worth taking away: an AI product with a large website, no phone app, and heavy TikTok affiliate spend telling people to "download" leaves its brand term empty on the App Store. The search demand was grown by someone else's money. Today that combination isn't limited to OpenArt.
Who it suits: people who already have a working AI image or video app codebase, can do multilingual ASO, and can reskin and ship within a week.
Who it doesn't suit: anyone who wants a long-term brand, anyone afraid of takedowns or complaints, and anyone who has to write everything from scratch. The window may close before your build does.
How to do it: don't put someone else's brand at the start of your name. There are three legitimate routes: target category and descriptive terms like "XX alternative" or "XX for iPhone"; build an officially licensed mobile client for a web-only AI product with an open API (negotiate directly, since they're missing exactly this); or build the same kind of feature under your own name, but aim your ASO and ads at the search terms that TikTok videos have built.
How to get users: follow the affiliates' pitch. They sell "making money on the side with AI", so your store screenshots and first screen should say the same thing. Search ads can bid on category terms, but stay away from the rival's trademark.
When to move: the sooner the better. As soon as the target brand announces an app, this path closes. With OpenArt at $100M annualized revenue and still spending heavily on TikTok, a mobile app from them is only a matter of time.
What would show I'm wrong: if the name-squatting apps' ratings keep rising steadily after OpenArt launches an official app, their traffic isn't all borrowed, and the product or other channels are doing the work. Conversely, if you find three empty brand terms using this signal and your app gets fewer than ten downloads a day a month after launch, this kind of search demand is thinner than it looks.
Research notes: competitor table, acquisition evidence, full research report
- Competitors
Name Where Launched Scale How it differs from this one OpenArt (openart.ai, the real brand) Web 2022–2023 8M MAU, over $70M annualized revenue (2026-01), Sacra reports $2026-06 reached $100M The real brand, with 100+ models, web-only with no mobile app. This app is a wrapper riding on its name. Openart AI Video Art Generator iOS 2026-08-16 US store rating 280 Same name-riding play, focused on video, launched earlier Openart AI - Photo Generator iOS 2026-04-30 US store rating 92 A rebranded app used as a front AI Art Generator - OpenArt(DMU) iOS 2022-11-11 526 rating An older name-rider with OpenArt placed after the name ChatGPT / Gemini / Grok built-in image generation Big-company features 2023–2025 Tens of millions of ratings Much stronger on quality and brand. Its only edge is that its name matches the openart search results. DaVinci - Image Generator AI(HUBX) iOS 2022-09 75k ratings A legitimate category-term ASO play that doesn't rely on borrowing a brand - Where users come from
- Verified App Store brand-term search (openart name collision): the name starts with Openart AI, and the localized names in 19 languages all keep that prefix. In the US store, searching "openart" ranks it #1–2. The rating growth is steady, with no chart-climbing spikes.
- Inference Spillover from the real OpenArt's TikTok affiliate campaign: TikHub searches for "openart app" return many #openartpartner side-hustle videos (faith.trades, 23, 197k views, etc.). OpenArt's help center states there is no mobile app.
- Inference Web payment / subscription: the Canadian review "bought on the web, can't log in on the app", and the app has weekly, monthly and annual subscriptions. It's also possible these are real OpenArt users who installed the wrong app by mistake.
- Inferred review bombing or incentivized reviews: the US store average is 4.1, but every review pulled is 1 stars. A data card notes a batch of templated five-star reviews in mid-September, unverified.
Why Openart AI Art & Image Maker (iOS id 6806166363) shows up in results
Research date 2026-11-06. Data comes from our appstore, googleplay and metaads libraries, the Apple lookup/search APIs, Jina search and TikHub.
One line
A standard AI text-to-image wrapper from a Swedish individual developer account (Malin Ekengren) that borrows the openart.ai name. The real OpenArt has over $70M in annual revenue and 8M MAU and runs heavy TikTok affiliate campaigns, but has no iOS app (the official help center says "Currently, there is no mobile app available yet"). Anyone searching "openart" on the App Store has no official app to install, so they land on this look-alike. It gets its traffic by capturing that brand search traffic. The product itself has no differentiation.
1. The data: how much it actually ran
- Listed as 2026-09-08, version 1.0.5 (2026-10-22), in 19 languages, with different localized names per store (German "Openart AI Kunst & Bildmacher", Japanese "Openart AI アート＆画像メーカー", and separate Korean and Traditional Chinese localizations). Source: appstore library app_name table, Apple lookup.
- Rating count: across all stores combined, it went from 2026-10-28 to 82 ratings to 11-06 to 172 (data card). In the US store it went from 42 to 88, and the average slowly fell from 4.26 to 4.11 (appstore library app_snapshot, us). On the day of the Apple US lookup it showed 90 ratings at 4.13 stars. The data card says 172 and 90 don't match. That isn't an anomaly: 172 is the all-store total, while 90 is the US store alone.
- Charts: over 10 days it was on the US Graphics & Design category chart, Top Free #66–83 and Top Grossing #59–89. In the gb, ca, au, kr and in category Top Grossing charts it reached #13–29. It charted in 57–75 stores in total (appstore library chart_rank / app_day). It never charted on the overall chart in any store.
- Scale: AppSprint estimates about 1K downloads and about $1K in revenue per month (appsprint.app/apps/6806166363,2026-11-06). The Graphics & Design category has a very low bar in small countries, so these ranks don't imply large revenue.
- All three reviews visible are 1 stars: ca 10-20 "Bought it on the web, can't log in on the app"; au 10-24 "Waste of money, want a refund"; it 10-29 "Very poor quality" (appstore database reviews).
2. Competitors
The brand it's riding (the real OpenArt, openart.ai): raised $5M in 2023. In 2026-01-30 it closed a $30M Series A led by Canaan, when it had 8M MAU, over $70M in annualized revenue and a team of 20 (Canaan blog, Coco Mao's post). Sacra says its annualized revenue reached $100M by June 2026. It has no iOS or Android app: the official help center says "Currently, there is no mobile app available yet", and a third-party review also says "There is no dedicated iOS or Android app yet" (openart.ai/help/).
Other apps on the App Store using the same term (this is a playbook, not a one-off):
| App | Developer | Launched | US store rating count | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Openart AI Video Art Generator (6799602460) | Bobby Preston | 2026-08-16 | 280(4.39) | Same name-riding play, earlier and bigger, with ratings in ng/gb/in/ph |
| Openart AI Art & Image Maker (6806166363) | Malin Ekengren | 2026-09-08 | 90(4.13) | This app |
| Openart AI - Photo Generator (6755889086) | FROUK TOV | 2026-04-30 | 92(3.27) | Bundle ID com.FileFlexPDF15kl.app, and the description still carries the old name "Imagify AI". It's a rebranded front. |
| Openart AI Prompt to Image (6781860371) | Ana Ceban | 2026-07-17 | 1 | Bundle ID com.anaceb.geneartisan. It names itself the same way as this app (initials plus a fantasy word, as in com.maleke.starweaver), and its privacy policies are also hosted on Google Docs. It's likely another listing from the same operator (inference). |
| AI Art Generator - OpenArt (6444178371) | DMU Software | 2022-11-11 | 526(3.80) | An older name-riding app |
| Open Art Ai Studio(Google Play openart.app) | ILORE LIMITED | — | ~9269 installs | Android has it too (Google Play library) |
Legit products doing the same thing: ChatGPT, Gemini, Grok, Kling, Canva, DaVinci (HUBX, 75k ratings), OpenPic, and others. Functionally, it has no edge over any of them. Searching "openart" on the App Store, the top three results are all name-squatting apps, sandwiched between Grok and ChatGPT (iTunes search, US, 2026-11-06).
3. Where users come from
- App Store brand-term search (the main driver, strong evidence): the name starts with "Openart AI", and every localized store name keeps the "Openart AI" prefix. In the US store, searching "openart" / "openart ai" ranks it #1–2. Chart presence and rating growth are steady, with none of the spikes you'd see from chart-pushing. It looks like organic search traffic.
- The demand comes from TikTok creator ads for the real OpenArt: a TikHub search for "openart app" returns lots of UGC promo videos tagged #openartpartner and #sidehustle, for example faith.trades23 with 197k views, madebykbb 6339, and emi.createss 5592. They all push "make money on the side with OpenArt", and viewers on their phones search the App Store for "openart" to install it. So OpenArt pays creators, and the name-squatting app captures the traffic.
- Web payments / subscriptions: The app has weekly, monthly and annual auto-renewing plans. The ca review "bought on the web, can't log in on the app" has two readings: one, the developer runs their own web2app payment funnel (the data card's call); two, real OpenArt web payers thought this was the official app and couldn't log in after downloading. The second fits the whole name-piggybacking logic better, but we can't confirm it.
- Reviews: the data card says a batch of templated five-star reviews appeared in mid-September. Our review library only captured three 1-star reviews, and I haven't verified this. But the US average of 4.1 doesn't match the visible reviews, which are all 1 stars, so solicited or bought five-star reviews are possible.
- Paid ads: no ads for it appear in the metaads library. The ad library only tracks products on its list, so not finding it doesn't mean it isn't advertising.
4. Visibility
- There's no media coverage, no discussion on X (x-radar found 0 posts mentioning "openart" in the past 60 days), and nothing on Reddit. Only auto-generated pages like AppSprint, Similarweb, chartoo, and appfigures mention it. Revenue isn't public.
- But this playbook is already crowded: at least 5 name-squatting apps are on the same term, and the earliest went up 2022 years ago.
5. Verdict
- Why it charted: the real OpenArt is big (8M MAU, over $70M annualized revenue) and spends heavily on TikTok creators, so its brand search volume is large. But it has no mobile app, so the brand term is empty on the App Store. This app claimed "Openart AI" plus localized names in 19 languages, captured the search traffic, and monetizes through subscriptions.
- Differentiation: none on the product. The only difference is the name, and the name is the whole reason it charted.
- Risks: first, trademark complaints. Apple's 4.1 / 5.2.2 guidelines could get it pulled at any time. Second, once OpenArt ships an official app, this traffic disappears overnight. Third, negative reviews are piling up (poor quality, login failures), and the average rating is falling.
- What you can borrow: look for AI brands that have a big web presence, no mobile app, and heavy TikTok creator spend. Their App Store brand terms are often empty. The signal itself is useful, but direct name-squatting is a gray tactic with trademark and takedown risk. The cleaner routes are "XX for mobile" or a mobile client built on XX's API with official authorization, or going after category terms like "XX alternative".
Uncertain
- The only revenue figure is AppSprint's estimate (about $1K/month), which is model-based.
- Whether the web payment funnel belongs to the developer or to real OpenArt users who installed this by mistake is unconfirmed.
- Whether this is the same operator as the Ana Ceban account is only inferred from naming patterns.
- I did not personally verify September's templated five-star reviews.
- Whether they bid on the brand term with Apple Search Ads can't be checked.
Sources
- apps.apple.com/app/id6806166363 ;itunes lookup/search(us,2026-11-06)
- appsprint.app/apps/6806166363
- openart.ai/help/("Currently, there is no mobile app available yet")
- www.canaan.com/news/why-we-led-openart-s-30m-series-a ;sacra.com/c/openart/
- TikHub TikTok search "openart app" (2026-11-06)
- Local libraries appstore (app_day / chart_rank / review / app_snapshot), googleplay, metaads