Meet the new Chinese vibe coding app that's so popular, one of its tools crashed

Ant Group, the technology powerhouse affiliated with Alibaba, has recently introduced its new AI coding assistant, LingGuang, which has taken the app world by storm. Launched just last Tuesday, the application allows users to engage in vibe coding and create apps using simple language prompts. Remarkably, it amassed over a million downloads within the first four days of its release. By the following Monday, the download numbers soared past 2 million, securing LingGuang the top spot on Apple's App Store in mainland China for free utility apps and sixth overall for free apps. However, the app's rapid rise in popularity came with challenges – the system struggled to handle the overwhelming traffic. Ant Group revealed that the app's flash program tool, a standout feature designed for creating personalized interactive apps in just 30 seconds, temporarily crashed due to the high volume of users. Despite the hiccup, the functionality of LingGuang remains impressive. Users have harnessed the app to develop a variety of applications, from activity generators for children to calculators that help users save on car expenses. He Zhengyu, Ant Group's Chief Technology Officer, highlighted that LingGuang provides users with a personal AI developer capable of coding, designing visuals, and simplifying complex ideas right from their pocket. The rapid growth of LingGuang has positioned it as a significant player in the competitive AI landscape, reportedly achieving its first million downloads faster than OpenAI's ChatGPT and Sora. Beyond the flash program tool, LingGuang is designed as a comprehensive multimodal AI platform, capable of generating 3D models, interactive charts, and animations, along with an innovative 'AGI camera' that interprets real-time scenes for image and video analysis. Currently, LingGuang is accessible on the Apple App Store, various major Android app stores, and the web. With this launch, Ant Group continues to bolster its commitment to AI development, having previously introduced healthcare applications and a humanoid robot earlier this year, demonstrating its ambition to remain at the forefront of technological advancement.