At a Glance
- A $1.15 iPhone app called “Are You Dead Yet” asks users to tap a green button daily; miss two days and it emails an emergency contact to check on them.
- The indie hit topped China’s paid App Store chart in January after a RedNote influencer spotlight, with no ad spend.
- Developers now field 60-plus investor offers worth millions of yuan and plan to re-brand the global version as “Demumu.”
- Why it matters: It spotlights China’s growing solo-living population-25 % of households are single-person-and the booming market for hyper-simple, safety-focused tech.
A three-person Gen-Z team has turned a macabre joke into the hottest paid app in China. Their product, “Are You Dead Yet,” does exactly one thing: if a user fails to press a green button for 48 hours, the software dispatches an automated email to a pre-selected contact urging an in-person welfare check. After launching quietly in June, the app rocketed to number one on China’s iOS paid chart on January 9 and is now climbing overseas rankings.
How the 48-Hour Safety Timer Works
First-time setup takes seconds:
- Enter your name
- Add an emergency email address
- Tap the giant green button once every calendar day
Miss two consecutive days and the system triggers the alert. There are no subscriptions, no extra screens, and no ads-just a blank background and the button. Developer Guo says the entire build cost roughly $200.
From Side Project to Sensation
Guo and two friends previously made social-entertainment apps, but safety felt more universal. “When I looked at Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, I saw that safety needs are deeper and apply to a much broader group of people,” he told News Of Fort Worth. The blunt name riffs on China’s ubiquitous food-delivery slogan, “Are You Hungry Yet,” and struck a nerve with young, urban singletons.
Sensor Tower data shows downloads were flat until late December, when a RedNote influencer post sent the app viral. Within weeks, 60-plus investors approached parent company Moonscape Technologies, some offering millions of yuan for minority stakes. Guo expects to close fundraising within weeks and plans to pour revenue into platform expansion.
Pricing Bump and Global Re-Brand
The team originally charged 1 RMB ($0.14) but raised the fee to 8 RMB ($1.15) amid the hype. Revenue and user numbers remain undisclosed, though Guo insists earnings will fund future development. On Tuesday, developers announced the international version will drop the morbid name in favor of “Demumu,” a portmanteau of “death” and the plush-toy phenomenon Labubu. Loyal fans pushed back on Weibo, arguing the dark humor was half the appeal.
AI Companion on the Horizon
Guo says the next update will weave in artificial intelligence to create “an AI safety companion installed on everyone’s phone,” though specific features have not been revealed. For now, the app’s minimalist appeal continues to attract solo dwellers-a demographic on the rise after China’s average household size shrank; one in four households now contain a single resident.
