So was this app at one point in time: https://www.theverge.com/2020/1/9/21058399/david-dobrik-disp...

It's called Dispo. You probably haven't heard of it because it became almost irrelevant a few weeks after launch. #1 on the app store doesn't mean a whole lot.

RedNote is a bit different: it has been wildly popular in China for a number of years, and the Chinese community has been using it overseas already.

It may not retain all the new users, but it is not going to become irrelevant.

I agree. But I'm just saying that #1 on the app store doesn't preclude something from being a fad and my guess is that in 1 month's time, no one is going to be talking about RedNote outside of Chinese communities.

That’s an extremely recent development caused by the TT shutdown looming.

How many of those downloads originated in China? Genuine question, I read the article and it doesn't say. Apple's App Store is available in China, and China's population alone could be skewing those numbers.

App store top apps are per-region. And China one likely even running on completely different infrastructure because CCP.

Yes it's called a meme and it won't last.