www.managedITmag.co.uk 5 Jastra Kranjec, Research Analyst at Techgaged, said: “ChatGPT has achieved what no other app outside the major social media giants ever has: it didn’t just catch up with TikTok, Instagram and Facebook, it surpassed them. Becoming the world’s mostdownloaded app in such a short time marks a historic turning point in the tech landscape and shows just how rapidly generative AI has become a mainstream phenomenon.” AppMagic data shows that between January and November, ChatGPT was downloaded 902 million times, nearly three times more than in the whole of 2024 and almost seven times more than in its launch year of 2023. Since its launch, ChatGPT has notched up 1.36 billion downloads, at a growth rate similar to TikTok, the fastest-growing social media app. TikTok was the second mostdownloaded app in 2025, with 703 million downloads between January and November, distantly followed by Instagram (521.6 million). The only other AI app in the top ten was Google Gemini with 392 million installs. https://www.techgaged.com/ chatgpt-hits-900m-downloads/ … Vibe coding: word of the year Collins Dictionary has picked ‘vibe coding’ as its word of the year. Reflecting a shift in how software is being created, and who can create it, vibe coding is the practice of describing the desired look and feel (or vibe) of an app or website and getting AI to generate the necessary code, rather than writing code oneself. Kevin Curran, IEEE, Senior Member and Professor of Cybersecurity at Ulster University, points out that while ‘vibe coding’ can lower barriers of entry to software development, it also introduces new risks. He said: “Individuals using vibe coding via lateral language prompts and iterative refinement are now empowered to create new apps and software, even with limited programming skills. This capability allows them to generate complex code using plain language inputted into LLMs. However, it can also aid hackers who can use LLMs to identify vulnerabilities and optimise exploits by automating tasks like code completion, bug detection or even generating malicious payloads tailored to specific systems. They can describe malicious behaviour in plain language and get working scripts in return. “The main security implications of vibe coding are that without discipline, documentation and review such code often fails under attack. This increases the risk of sensitive data leaks and can create opportunities for threat actors. Proper secure code development should include refactoring code for production use and adhering to security hygiene, such as input validation, the principle of least privilege, threat modelling, secure storage and other well-established secure coding practices.” NEWS continued... CoCreate Pitch winner Alibaba.com’s start-up competition CoCreate Pitch, held at its inaugural CoCreate Europe event on November 14, has been won by Harrison Nott for a cooling towel that provides instant relief after exercise and on hot days. As the Grand Winner, the 15-year-old from Essex receives a $200,000 prize package to help him scale his CoolTowel business which already turns over £200,000 per annum. Nott was one of 30 finalists selected to pitch their product to a panel of judges including Sara Davies and Rio Ferdinand. Ten other finalists were Highly Commended, including three from the UK: HUID, a Scottish business making compostable packaging from onion skins; Intotum, an adaptive fashion brand designed for those with disabilities; and Nutri Troops, a children’s nutrition company. They each win a prize package valued at $20,000. Alibaba.com Smart glasses shift focus in wearables market The centre of gravity in the global wearables market is shifting from wristworn devices to smart glasses, claims Futuresource Consulting in its Global Wearables Market Outlook 2025 report. While Futuresource forecasts global wrist-worn shipments to grow 4.8% in 2025 to nearly 210 million units, smart glasses shipments are expected to grow at a much faster rate to 2.6 million units, from 1.6 million in 2024. Nikolaos Tzoumerkas, Lead Analyst at Futuresource Consulting, said: “Smartwatches and sports watches are still part of the equation, but smart glasses are redefining what a wearable can be. They’re merging lifestyle, health and connectivity in entirely new ways, and consumers are sitting up and paying attention.” He adds that, led by Meta’s partnerships with Ray-Ban and Oakley, the category is being reshaped with lightweight eyewear that integrates cameras, AI assistants and connectivity to deliver real-time, hands-free interaction with style. “Smart glasses are no longer seen as niche gadgets. They’re lifestyle products that people actually want to be seen wearing,” he said. “With smart glasses gaining ground and AI moving to the edge, the next wave of growth will be defined by connected intelligence, effortless integration and elegant design.” To purchase the Global Wearables Market Outlook 2025, please contact [email protected]. Alibaba has entered the AI wearables market with its first self-developed smart eyewear product. Quark AI Glasses, powered by the Qwen LLM and Quark’s multimodal AI capabilities, are designed to serve as an intelligent, all-day wearable assistant supporting hands-free calling, music streaming, real-time language translation, meeting transcriptions and navigation. www.alibabacloud.com
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