What it is
Dola is a general chat assistant run by SPRING (SG) Pte. Ltd., a Singapore company. AFP reported in February 2026 that ByteDance's Doubao app "is called Dola, previously Cici, overseas", and Dola's own privacy policy lists a bytedance.com contact address. You can ask it questions, get help with writing and translation, summarise a webpage or document, talk to it by voice, and generate images and short videos. It works in a browser, as apps for iPhone, iPad and Android, and as a desktop app for Windows and Mac. The desktop app adds a toolbar that works inside Office programs and a keyboard shortcut to call it up from anywhere.
Who it suits
Individuals who want one app for everyday questions, study help and the odd image or video, and who like switching between typing and talking. The terms say the service is for private, non-commercial use, so look elsewhere if you need an assistant for client or company work.
Pricing
The free plan includes chat, web search and questions about images and pages, with daily caps on image and video generation, voice calls and work tools. In the UK App Store, Plus costs £7.49 a month or £74.99 a year, Pro is £36.99 a month and Max is £109.99 a month. Paid plans raise the limits on Pro mode, image and video generation, spreadsheet tasks and research.
Where it falls short
Dola doesn't say which AI models it runs on, and there's no plan comparison on its website, so you have to open the app to see exact limits. No team plans or admin controls are advertised. Web access is blocked in some countries, so the apps are the safer route.
