OpenAI releases first-of-kind study revealing how people are using ChatGPT for everyday tasks

In an unprecedented study released this week, researchers, including contributors from OpenAI, have shed light on how everyday users are engaging with ChatGPT. This comprehensive analysis marks a significant step in understanding the practical applications of large language models in day-to-day activities. The findings, published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, reveal a notable increase in non-work-related interactions with ChatGPT, which surged to 73% in June 2025, up from 53% the previous year. OpenAI's Chief Economist, Aaron Chatterji, emphasized the importance of these results, indicating that ChatGPT is increasingly integrated into various facets of users' lives. "This trend provides valuable insights into the evolving role of AI in our daily routines," Chatterji remarked on LinkedIn. The study, co-authored by OpenAI's Economic Research team and Harvard economist David Deming, utilized a privacy-conscious approach to analyze 1.5 million conversations. It revealed that, while ChatGPT has the potential to tackle complex tasks like coding, the primary consumer use has been focused on completing everyday tasks. Notably, three main categories emerged from user interactions: practical guidance, information seeking, and writing tasks, with practical guidance leading the way. Requests for tutoring, how-to advice, and creative brainstorming dominated the practical guidance category. Interestingly, the study highlighted differences in usage based on the context—work-related writing tasks constituted 40% of workplace messages on average in June, with many users employing ChatGPT for editing, critiquing, and translating existing text rather than generating new content from scratch. The researchers also categorized messages into "Asking, Doing, and Expressing." As of July, half of all messages fell into the "Asking" category, indicating that users value ChatGPT primarily as a source of advice. Conversely, 56% of work-related messages were classified as "Doing," suggesting that users were leveraging the tool to accomplish specific job tasks. The implications of AI integration into the workplace have sparked discussions since ChatGPT's consumer launch in November 2022, with concerns about potential job displacement. However, the study suggests that, particularly in knowledge-intensive roles, ChatGPT is more likely to enhance decision-making and productivity rather than replace workers outright. As of July, ChatGPT's user base had expanded to encompass 10% of the global adult population, with its demographic reach becoming increasingly diverse. Data from January 2024 indicated that 37% of users had names typically associated with feminine identity, and by mid-2025, the gender gap in user adoption had significantly narrowed. Furthermore, ChatGPT has gained traction in low- and middle-income countries, with adoption rates in the lowest-income regions outpacing those in wealthier nations by more than four times. In addition to various consumer subscription models, ChatGPT offers enterprise solutions and API access, along with a specialized software engineering agent known as Codex. While ChatGPT continues to grow rapidly, it faces stiff competition from emerging rivals such as Elon Musk's XAI and Google's Gemini, which recently claimed the top spot among free apps on Apple’s App Store.