Overview
- The app prompts solo dwellers to check in on a set schedule and alerts preset emergency contacts if they miss check-ins.
- It now charges a small download fee — 8 yuan in China and roughly $0.99 to $1.99 elsewhere — and has led paid rankings in China while charting highly in countries such as Australia, the US, the UK, Singapore and the Netherlands.
- Co-founders in their 20s say they built the app as a side project and reported a jump in estimated company value to more than 10 million yuan following the surge in downloads.
- The team renamed the app from 'Are You Dead?' to Demumu to reduce controversy, and they are now soliciting a new name with a public contest after mixed reactions to the rebrand.
- The breakout has spurred imitators and a broader discussion about rising solo living and data privacy, with China reporting over 100 million one-person households.