This milestone was revealed at the first-ever Southeast Asia Apps Summit 2025, hosted by TikTok in Hanoi on October 29. The event brought together 300 business leaders and industry experts.

At the summit, TikTok signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Digital Transformation Center under Vietnam’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. This partnership aims to strengthen the national digital ecosystem by supporting local businesses, promoting cultural exchange, and driving sustainable digital growth.

According to SensorTower, TikTok is the fastest-growing platform in the region, highlighting its appeal and strategic role in Southeast Asia’s digital economy.

“Every month, over 160 million users in Indonesia, 70 million in Vietnam, and 50 million in Thailand access TikTok. Along with 180 million others across the region, they use the platform for entertainment, education, and exploration. These numbers underscore Southeast Asia’s role as a digital growth hub,” said Nikhil Rolla, TikTok’s Strategic Customer Director for Southeast Asia.

“Our partnership with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism reaffirms TikTok’s long-term commitment to innovation and sustainable ecosystem development in the region,” he added.

TikTok is no longer just an entertainment platform. It has become a powerful launchpad for app discovery and business growth across various sectors, including gaming, finance, tourism, and retail.

Statistics show that two-thirds of TikTok users intentionally search for apps on the platform, and 45% dive deeper into learning about them. This reflects TikTok’s growing influence in user decision-making, far beyond passive entertainment.

From first installs to long-term engagement, TikTok enables developers and businesses to reach target audiences, optimize campaigns in real time, and measure performance throughout the user journey.

With a blend of creative storytelling, community power, and deep analytics, TikTok empowers app developers to scale effectively, build loyalty, and maximize lifetime value.

Brands across Southeast Asia are seeing stronger returns and sustainable growth by leveraging TikTok as a strategic platform.

A standout example is Hypermonk Games, which used TikTok’s new solutions to promote their hit game Highway Overtake. They achieved a 20% higher return on ad spend compared to their KPI and cut installation costs by 50% versus manual bidding.

TikTok is not just a platform but a complete ecosystem that helps brands turn creative ideas into measurable business results.

“We’re entering a new era of creativity where AI fuels imagination and bold ideas,” said Nikhil Rolla. “TikTok helps brands of all sizes act faster, scale smarter, and stay in sync with cultural trends.”

At the heart of this evolution is Symphony - TikTok’s generative AI-powered creative suite. Symphony is designed to support marketers at every stage of the content creation process. It transforms ideas into high-quality videos within minutes, complete with scripts, visuals, and multilingual voiceovers.

The suite also enables the creation of AI-generated virtual personas, allowing brands to deliver messages with more flexibility and impact.

Another key advantage TikTok offers is access to its vast and authentic user community. Through Content Suite, brands can identify and repurpose high-performing, user-generated content that directly features their products.

This tool offers over 40 times the search efficiency compared to in-app browsing and allows brands to convert these videos into licensed ads in just a few steps.

Thai Khang