What do people actually use ChatGPT for? OpenAI provides some numbers.

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Brand-new research study breaks down what 700 million users do throughout 2.6 billion day-to-day GPT messages.

A live take a look at how OpenAI collected its user information.

Credit: Getty Images

As somebody who blogs about the AI market reasonably often for this website, there is one concern that I discover myself continuously asking and being asked in turn, in some type or another: What do you in fact utilize big language designs for?

Today, OpenAI’s Economic Research Team went a long method towards responding to that concern, on a population level, launching a first-of-its-kind National Bureau of Economic Research working paper (in association with Harvard financial expert David Denning) detailing how individuals wind up utilizing ChatGPT throughout time and jobs. While other research study has actually looked for to approximate this sort of use information utilizing self-reported studies, this is the very first such paper with direct access to OpenAI’s internal user information. It offers us an unmatched direct window into trusted use statistics for what is still the most popular application of LLMs by far.

After digging through the thick 65-page paper, here are 7 of the most intriguing and/or unexpected things we found about how individuals are utilizing OpenAI today.

Table of Contents

OpenAI is still growing at a fast clip

We’ve understood for a while that ChatGPT was popular, however this paper offers a direct take a look at simply how huge the LLM has actually been getting in current months. Simply determining weekly active users on ChatGPT’s customer strategies (i.e. Free, Plus, and Pro tiers), ChatGPT passed 100 million users in early 2024, climbed up past 400 million users early this year, and presently can boast over 700 million users, or “nearly 10% of the world’s adult population,” according to the business.

Line increases … and faster than ever nowadays.

Credit: OpenAI

OpenAI confesses its measurements may be somewhat off thanks to double-counting some logged-out users throughout several private gadgets, along with some logged-in users who preserve numerous accounts with various e-mail addresses. And other reporting recommends just a little minority of those users are paying for the benefit of utilizing ChatGPT simply. Still, the large variety of individuals who are at least curious about attempting OpenAI’s LLM appears to still be on the high upward part of its development curve.

All those brand-new users are likewise resulting in considerable boosts in simply the number of messages OpenAI processes daily, which has actually increased from about 451 million in June 2024 to over 2.6 billion in June 2025 (balanced over a week near completion of the month). To consider that number some context, Google revealed in March that it averages 14 billion searches each day, which’s after years as the undeniable leader in Internet search.

… however use development is plateauing amongst long-lasting users

More recent users have actually driven nearly all of the general use development in ChatGPT in current months.

More recent users have actually driven practically all of the general use development in ChatGPT in current months.

Credit: OpenAI

In addition to determining total user and use development, OpenAI’s paper likewise breaks down overall use based upon when its logged-in users very first registered for an account. These charts reveal simply just how much of ChatGPT’s current development is reliant on brand-new user acquisition, instead of older users increasing their day-to-day use.

In regards to typical everyday message volume per specific long-lasting user, ChatGPT appears to have actually seen 2 unique and sharp development durations. The very first runs approximately from September through December 2024, accompanying the launch of the o1-preview and o1-mini designs. Typical per-user messaging on ChatGPT then mostly plateaued till April, when the launch of the o3 and o4-mini designs triggered another substantial use boost through June.

Given that June, however, per-user message rates for recognized ChatGPT users (those who registered in the very first quarter of 2025 or previously) have actually been extremely flat for 3 complete months. The development in total use throughout that last quarter has actually been totally driven by more recent users who have actually registered considering that April, a number of whom are still getting their feet damp with the LLM.

Typical everyday use for long-lasting users has actually stopped growing in current months, even as brand-new users increase their ChatGPT message rates.

Credit: OpenAI

We’ll see if the current turbulent launch of the GPT-5 design causes another substantial boost in per-user message volume averages in the coming months. If it does not, then we might be seeing a minimum of a short-term ceiling on just how much usage developed ChatGPT users leave the service in a typical day.

ChatGPT users are more youthful and were more male than the basic population

While youths are normally most likely to welcome brand-new innovation, it’s striking simply just how much of ChatGPT’s user base is comprised of our youngest group mate. A complete 46 percent of users who exposed their age in OpenAI’s research study sample were in between the ages of 18 and 25. Include the doubtless substantial variety of individuals under 18 utilizing ChatGPT (who weren’t consisted of in the sample at all), and a good bulk of OpenAI’s users most likely aren’t old sufficient to keep in mind the 20th century firsthand.

What began as primarily a young boys’club has actually reached near gender parity amongst ChatGPT users, based upon gendered name analysis.

What began as mainly a young boys’club has actually reached near to gender parity amongst ChatGPT users, based upon gendered name analysis.

Credit: OpenAI

OpenAI likewise approximated the most likely gender split amongst a big sample of ChatGPT users by utilizing Social Security information and the World Gender Name Registry’s list of highly manly or womanly given names. When ChatGPT introduced in late 2022, this analysis discovered approximately 80 percent of weekly active ChatGPT users were most likely male. In late 2025, that ratio has actually turned to a small (52.4 percent) bulk for most likely female users.

Individuals are utilizing it for more than work

In spite of all the speak about LLMs possibly changing the office, a considerable bulk of all ChatGPT usage has absolutely nothing to do with organization performance, according to OpenAI. Non-work jobs (as determined by an LLM-based classifier) grew from about 53 percent of all ChatGPT messages in June of 2024 to 72.2 percent since June 2025, according to the research study.

As time goes on, increasingly more ChatGPT use is ending up being non-work associated.

Credit: OpenAI

A few of this may relate to the exemption of users in business, Enterprise, and Education membership tiers from the information set. Still, the current increase in non-work usages recommends that a great deal of the most recent ChatGPT users are doing so more for individual than for performance factors.

ChatGPT users require aid with their composing

It’s not that unexpected that a great deal of individuals utilize a big language design to assist them with creating composed words. It’s still striking the level to which composing assistance is a significant usage of ChatGPT.

Throughout 1.1 million discussions dating from May 2024 to June 2025, a complete 28 percent handled composing help in some kind or another, OpenAI stated. That increases to a tremendous 42 percent for the subset of discussions tagged as job-related (without a doubt the most popular job-related job), and a bulk, 52 percent, of all job-related discussions from users with “management and business occupations.”

A great deal of ChatGPT usage is individuals looking for aid with their writing in some type.

A great deal of ChatGPT usage is individuals looking for assist with their writing in some kind.

Credit: OpenAI

OpenAI fasts to mention, however, that much of these users aren’t simply depending on ChatGPT to create e-mails or messages from entire fabric. The percent of all discussions studied includes users asking the LLM to “edit or critique” text, at 10.6 percent, vs. simply 8 percent that handle producing “personal writing or communication” from a timely. Another 4.5 percent of all discussions handle equating existing text to a brand-new language, versus simply 1.4 percent handling “writing fiction.”

More individuals are utilizing ChatGPT as an educational online search engine

In June 2024, about 14 percent of all ChatGPT discussions were tagged as connecting to “seeking information.” By June 2025, that number had actually increased to 24.4 percent, somewhat edging out writing-based triggers in the sample (which had actually fallen from approximately 35 percent of the 2024 sample).

A growing variety of ChatGPT discussions now handle “seeking information” as you may make with a more standard online search engine.

Credit: OpenAI

While current GPT designs appear to have actually improved about pointing out pertinent sources to support their details, OpenAI is no closer to resolving the prevalent confabulation issue that makes LLMs a dodgy tool for recovering realities. Thankfully, less individuals appear thinking about utilizing ChatGPT to inquire at work; that utilize case comprises simply 13.5 percent of job-related ChatGPT discussions, well listed below the 40 percent that are writing-related.

A a great deal of employees are utilizing ChatGPT to make choices

Amongst job-related discussions, “making decisions and solving problems” is a fairly popular usage for ChatGPT.

Amongst job-related discussions, “making decisions and solving problems” is a reasonably popular usage for ChatGPT.

Credit: OpenAI

Getting aid modifying an e-mail is something, however asking ChatGPT to assist you make a company choice is another completely. Throughout job-related discussions, OpenAI states a substantial 14.9 percent handled “making decisions and solving problems.” That’s 2nd just to “documenting and recording information” for job-related ChatGPT discussions amongst the lots of “generalized work activity” classifications categorized by O * NET.

This held true throughout all the various profession types OpenAI took a look at, which the business recommends implies individuals are “using ChatGPT as an advisor or research assistant, not just a technology that performs job tasks directly.”

And the rest …

Some other extremely promoted usage cases for ChatGPT that represented a remarkably little part of the tested discussions throughout OpenAI’s research study:

Multimedia (e.g., developing or obtaining an image): 6 percent
Computer system programs: 4.2 percent (though a few of this usage may be contracted out to the API)
Imaginative ideation: 3.9 percent
Mathematical computation: 3 percent
Relationships and individual reflection: 1.9 percent
Video game and roleplay: 0.4 percent

Kyle Orland has actually been the Senior Gaming Editor at Ars Technica considering that 2012, composing mainly about business, tech, and culture behind computer game. He has journalism and computer technology degrees from University of Maryland. He when composed an entire book about Minesweeper

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