Meta announces a new CapCut rival called Edits

Meta Sunday announced a new video editing app called Edits, after ByteDance’s video editing app CapCut was removed from Apple’s App Store and the Google Play Store as part of the TikTok ban.

Instagram head Adam Mosseri (pictured above) said on Threads that the app will launch next month on iOS, with an Android version following later. He added that the company is working with select creators to gather feedback about the app.

“Today we’re announcing a new app called ‘Edits,’ for those of you who are passionate about making videos on your phone. There’s a lot going on right now, but no matter what happens, it’s our job to provide the best possible tools for creators,” he wrote.

Mosseri said the app will have a suite of creative tools, including a dedicated tab for inspiration, a tab for keeping track of ideas, and a high-quality camera. Plus, it will have the ability to share draft versions of creations with friends or collaborators. He added that creators would be able to see insights on how videos made through Edits are performing on Instagram after publishing.

In a separate post, he emphasized that the app is “more for creators than casual video makers,” which is hard to quantify in measurable terms.

Meta has historically made moves to fill in gaps in the market. When TikTok was banned in India in June 2020, it launched a similar product, Instagram Reels, days later in early July. In 2023, the company also launched Threads, a rival to text-based social networks such as X. The company likely realizes that a lot of video creators will try another tool in the absence of CapCut. And even if the app is restored, the uncertainty will create opportunities for other tools.

Earlier this month, a16z-backed video editing app Captions switched to a freemium model to attract more users and challenge CapCut.