ChatGPT’s user growth has slowed, report finds

Recent insights from market analysis firm Sensor Tower reveal that the rapid expansion of ChatGPT is beginning to slow down. Despite remaining the frontrunner in the AI chatbot sector—claiming 50% of global mobile downloads and 55% of monthly active users—ChatGPT faces increasing competition from Google's Gemini. Gemini has recently surged ahead in terms of download growth and user engagement. This uptick in popularity could enable it to close the gap with ChatGPT, a concern that has prompted OpenAI to signal a 'code red' internally. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has urged his team to prioritize enhancements to their AI offerings, focusing on key areas such as reliability and personalization. While both ChatGPT and Gemini continue to experience substantial growth, the numbers tell a compelling story. ChatGPT's global monthly active users surged by 180% year-over-year as of November 2025, bringing their total to approximately 810 million. However, this figure reflects only a 6% growth from August to November, indicating potential market saturation. In contrast, Gemini's user base has expanded by about 30% in the same period, driven largely by the introduction of its innovative image generation model, Nano Banana. Notably, the app's usage patterns show that twice as many U.S. Android users are engaging with Gemini directly through the Android operating system compared to the stand-alone app. This strategic advantage could bolster Gemini's position in a market dominated by Android. As the competition escalates, Gemini is also gradually increasing its share of the overall AI chatbot market. Sensor Tower estimates that Gemini's global monthly active users have risen by 3 percentage points over the past seven months, while ChatGPT has seen a 3 percentage point decline in its user share. The challenges posed by rivals like Perplexity and Claude are also significant, as both have reported impressive growth figures—370% and 190% year-over-year, respectively. Meanwhile, although ChatGPT's downloads increased by 85% year-over-year, this growth is trailing behind the industry average of 110%. Furthermore, the time spent by users in the Gemini app has more than doubled to an impressive 11 minutes per day. In contrast, ChatGPT's user engagement has stagnated, with a mere 6% increase in time spent, and a 10% decline from July to November. As these dynamics unfold, it remains to be seen whether OpenAI can reclaim momentum with new product launches that can rival the impact of Gemini's latest features.