10 Promising Mobile Apps by Startups to Watch Out for in 2022

In 2021, the number of mobile app downloads reached 230 billion. The very thing is – it’ll keep growing. Can you wrap your mind around that for a second?

Along with that, what is it you see right before going to sleep and first thing in the morning? My guess is a mobile screen: notifications, alerts, messages, anything. Right, we do the same. As an integral part of the tech junkie community, we’re always on the lookout for apps that make a difference.

This time, we’ll tell you about some of the 10 most promising start-ups that are about to roll out their mobile apps in 2022. Get ready.

1. Weavit’

Weavit’s co-founder Emmanuel Lefort thought up a way to make note-making even more special. The new app by Weavit basically mimics how the human brain entertains ideas and gives them structure.

It works like this: users dictate or type in their thoughts and ideas, and Weavit’s NLP-powered database links those notions to certain events, locations, people, and topics that are out there in the online universe. Here’s an example. You may think of introducing your idea to some individuals at an upcoming event. You’d type something along the lines of “say this and this at the ABC event, and make sure Chris T. and Hannah K. hear it.” Now, Weavit’s app identifies both the event and people’s names and offers you other event-related content. It can even display the mentioned persons’ companies or past meetings. And at this point, you don’t have to lift a finger – the system is automatic.

Weavit founders made sure that all the data involved is encrypted. They call the app a “Shazam for your thoughts.” That’s a fact – you only need to let those thoughts free, and the app will do the organization.

2. Niantic

Founded by John Hanke, Niantic delivers innovative software solutions and is most known for building such augmented reality apps as Ingress and Pokemon Go (recall the hype?). But that’s not what we’re here for. The company has recently received $300 million in funding from a worldwide technology investor Coatue to create a real-world metaverse.

What are we dealing with? While many tech companies focus on metaverses, Niantic decided to go a step further. The startup revealed their plans to launch a universe that belongs in the real world – that is, with AR-powered technology, people can go out in the open and explore their surroundings using Niantic’s tools. These same tools activate actual objects, allowing people to enjoy an enriched reality while still connecting with their peers.

The most value here lies in the fact that Niantic strives to bring people together instead of locking them inside and tying them to devices.

Hanke himself stated, “At Niantic, we believe humans are the happiest when their virtual world leads them to a physical one.”

Meet you out there.

3. nate

The founder & CEO of nate, Albert Saniger, solved the struggle for many shoppers. Nate's well-funded – we’re talking $38 million – new app combines social media interactions and shopping in one.

Here’s the catch: ate’s app saves user data needed for purchasing, such as payment and shipping details. So, when a user intends to buy anything from a supported online platform, they just need to redirect their purchase to the nate app. It handles the rest – and there’s no need to go through a lengthy checkout process every time. Nate’s users can buy products from 2.1 million online US stores, which make up 60% of the country’s e-commerce market.

4. Papaya

Patrick Kann launched Papaya keeping in mind that payments can get as easy as ever. Same goes for anything else that comes with it, like scheduling and tracking – with Papaya, users can spend more time on what’s important and let the app do the work. The start-up raised a whopping $50 million in funding from Sequoia Capital – a well-known capital group that recently invested in Airbnb, Stripe, and Apple. That’s impressive for a fresh company.

The mechanics: app users take a photo of a bill that needs to be paid (whether it’s healthcare services, rent or mortgage, parking, anything), select their payment method, and Papaya finishes the process for you. It also saves your billing history just to make sure nothing gets missed out.

Such an untraditional way of paying bills is loved by many: it reduces stress, saves time, and is universal for different bill types. More benefits include Papaya’s bank-level security backed by HIPAA and PCI compliance as well as its speed of bill processing. All that’s needed from you is a mobile device and payment details.

5. Dream Games

Soyner Aydemir managed to create a leading mobile gaming business – Dream Games – that has recently gained $255 million in funding from Index Ventures, Makers Fund, IVP, and other major venture capitals. The start-up doubled its value in only 6 months. Let’s see why.

Dream Games’ most popular feature, Royal Match, ended up in the top 20 mobile games in the US, UK, and Germany. The latest funding is expected to develop the game even further.

Aydemir stated that “Dream Games approaches gaming in a way Pixar approaches filmmaking.”

The key points here are engagement and immersion. Users keep coming back for a rich experience regardless of the competition in the gaming world.

As of now, Dream Games has gained around $468 million from investors. With more money allocated to mobile games, developers get a chance to push the limit further – and create gaming worlds no one would’ve expected to witness.

6. Honor

Honor, a senior care startup founded by Seth Sternberg, received $370 million in Series E funding and debt financing. The concept behind Honor was born as Sternberg quit his job at Google to provide care for his elderly mother. As of now, the unicorn startup’s value is over $1.25 billion. And, Honor’s family app helps thousands.

What does it do? With the Honor Family app, users can choose a date, location, and time to set up care visits. They receive an extensive care note including the completed tasks from the chosen carer, who also oversees other people visiting your loved one. Care professionals track any wellness indicators you’re worried about.

An app like this makes a difference in the COVID-affected world. It enables caring for your loved ones from a distance and making sure they’re in good spirits. Regardless of your location, Honor brings family a bit closer.

7. Instacart

Apoorva Mehta’s creation, Instacart, has been familiar to the masses for a while. Yet, it’s expected to augment after securing $265 million in funding from investors Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, D1 Capital Partners, Fidelity Management & Research Company, and T. Rowe Price Associates.

The point? Instacart simplifies grocery shopping by letting customers place orders online and get them delivered right to the door. These days, the app is markedly in demand. Instacart went further than decreasing social traffic in grocery stores. It now delivers prescription drugs, sports equipment, home decor, and practically anything else that helps people handle the pandemic with more convenience.

Instacart currently works with over 600 merchants across 45,000 US and Canadian stores. Now that social distancing and delivery services have become a new norm, start-ups like this one keep highlighting the importance of safety without sacrificing comfort.

8. BillEase

BillEase received $11 million in a Series B funding round guided by the growth capital arm of Hubert Burda Media, BurdaPrincipal Investments. Founded by Ritche Weekun and his colleagues, the platform offers buy-now-pay-later services (BNPL) to Filipino residents.

In detail: app users can purchase goods and pay later with a digital wallet, direct debit, bank transfer, over-the-counter payment at smaller physical stores, or by linking their bank account to the app. BillEase works with 500 sellers and offers extra payments for digital wallets like GCash, PayMaya, Coins.ph, GrabPay and Shopee Pay.

BillEase has a few features that make it stand out. It enables clients to create formal credit records and improves its functioning to make credit scores effortless. BillEase also owns its credit, fraud, and payment software stack, with which over 90% of BNPL loans can be approved. With the investments aimed at further app development, the Philippines is on its way towards a better credit system.

9. Masters

In a funding round by Sweet Capital, Mucker Capital, Goodwater Capital, and Luxor Capital, Greg Drach’s app Masters gathered $2.7 million worth of investment. The app gives users an opportunity to work out along with the most known global athletes and get their guidance on training.

According to Techcrunch, the company has signed up X Games athletes, three-time Olympic snowboarding champion Shaun White; World and nine-time U.S. champion in 3,000-meter steeplechase, Emma Coburn; surfing world champion, Kai Lenny; soccer superstar and Golden Ball winner, Ada Hegerberg; and two-time Wimbledon tennis champion, Petra Kvitova. And the list goes on.

All the courses come in a format of high-quality videos, and every course merges thousands of active individuals. Each of them can easily connect to global sports legends with a functional device, and the entire community comes together to become healthier and stronger.

Imagine the impact this has!

10. Pluang

Pluang, an investment app created by Claudia Kolonas, Richard Chua, and Aditya Cha, closed off a Series B round led by Accel India with $55 million gained in funding. It also received investments from founders of Axie Infinity, Alexa von Tobel (ex-CEO of Learnvest), Sujata Bhatia (Monzo COO), Raghu Yarlagadda (FalconX CEO), The Chainsmokers, BRI Ventures, Gold House, and previous investors – Square Peg, Go-Ventures, UOB Venture Management, and Openspace Ventures. The start-up focuses on giving Indonesians opportunities to grow their wealth through investing. Pluang plans to expand and operate in other regions of South Asia.

The point is: Pluang first started with gold and since then expanded the assets list to include indexes, mutual funds, and crypto assets, with plans to invest in US stocks. Every transaction is secured with an appropriate protocol. What’s more, the start-up partners with Indonesian tech companies to broaden their reach and sell more investment products. Pluang has also become part of Indonesian super apps such as Gojek, DANA, Tokopedia and Bukalapak.

From January 2020 to November 2021, Pluang witnessed 22x growth in monthly transacting users and 28.5x growth in users with an active balance. As of now, there are over 4 million active users in Indonesia.

And it doesn’t seem to stop moving forward.

We’ve only covered a tiny fraction of all the promising tech start-ups the world is about to see skyrocket this year. One day, yours might end up on our next list.