ChatGPT is nearing one billion weekly active users, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman revealed at a TED conference, citing a significant surge in user numbers driven by the platform’s updated image generation feature, particularly its Studio Ghibli-style imitations.
Altman stated that ChatGPT’s weekly active users had doubled in just a few weeks, with around 500 million users reported previously. He also revealed that roughly 10% of the global population, or approximately 800 million people, use OpenAI’s systems.
ChatGPT’s growth has been remarkable since its launch on November 30, 2022, reaching 100 million users in just two months and becoming the fastest-growing computer application in history. For context, TikTok took nine months to reach the same milestone, while Instagram required two and a half years.
The recent update to ChatGPT’s image generator on March 25 introduced improved image handling and led to a surge in user-generated content, particularly in the style of Studio Ghibli. The resulting flood of images and videos on social media was so intense that it strained OpenAI’s infrastructure, with Altman noting that the demand “melted” the company’s GPUs. The update attracted one million new users in a single hour.
400M users and counting: ChatGPT’s growth shows no signs of slowing
New data from Appfigures shows that ChatGPT was the world’s most downloaded app in March, excluding games, with 46 million new downloads, representing a 28% increase from February. Altman believes that the increased capabilities brought about by AI will lead to increased productivity, stating that while job expectations may rise, the technology’s capabilities will “increase so dramatically” that it will be easy for people to adapt.
Altman also reflected on ChatGPT’s launch, tweeting, “the ChatGPT launch 26 months ago was one of the craziest viral moments i’d ever seen, and we added one million users in five days. we added one million users in the last hour.”
