ChatGPT is still a very large app. New data show that its growth may have peaked. The app is still getting millions of installs. The pace of new downloads is slowing, and users are opening the app less often.
Download growth slows
App intelligence firm Apptopia finds that the month-over-month percentage change in new global downloads has weakened since April. Apptopia projects October will be down about 8.1 percent versus September by this measure. That does not mean total installs stopped. It means that the rate of new user growth is cooling.
The app also shows that global daily active user growth has flattened in recent weeks. The data point to a shift from rapid expansion to a steadier base of users. This pattern often follows a big early surge for mainstream apps.
User engagement falls
In the United States, the average time spent per daily active user dropped by roughly 22.5 percent since July. Average sessions per daily active user in the United States fell by about 20.7 percent in the same span. Those drops mean that U S users both spend less time in the app and open it fewer times per day.
The app notes that churn among U S users has settled down. It retains a core group of regular users. The early surge of casual or curious users appears to have faded. That matters because future growth will rely more on deeper engagement and repeat use than on novelty.
What may be behind the change is not simple. Competition has increased quickly. Google launched new tools that rose in the charts in September. Meanwhile, OpenAI changed how some models behave to reduce overly flattering responses. Those model shifts and the arrival of rivals both likely play a role.
OpenAI has acknowledged the issue of excessive agreeableness in an earlier model update, and it rolled back that update while it tested fixes. The company has also adjusted later models to be less sycophantic. Those changes may make the app feel less personable to some users who liked the old style.
How to read the numbers
Benchmarks and estimates from third-party firms are useful signals. They are not official company totals, and they have limits. Apptopia uses its own methods to estimate downloads and engagement. Those methods give useful trends, but the final judgment should wait for more data and for independent reports from app stores and the company.
OpenAI faces both product and market choices. The company must balance how its models behave with how users wish to interact. It must also contend with increasing competition from other major players that have deep resources. The next steps will shape whether ChatGPT resumes fast growth or settles into a steady role in many people lives.