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The trajectory of ChatGPT appears to be slowing down, fresh analysis from market research company Sensor Tower reveals. The flagship AI from OpenAI still commands the field, capturing half of worldwide mobile downloads and more than half of total monthly active users. Yet Google’s Gemini is surging ahead in key metrics like download increases, user engagement growth, and daily app usage, signaling a tightening competition in the AI assistant arena.
This momentum could allow Gemini to chip away at ChatGPT’s lead over time, a concern that has evidently rattled OpenAI leadership. In a recent internal alert dubbed a “code red,” CEO Sam Altman urged the team to prioritize enhancements in core features such as user customization, dependability, and advanced image creation capabilities, according to reports on the memo.
Despite the shift, the battle for dominance shows no signs of letting up, with both platforms posting impressive gains. As of November 2025, ChatGPT’s global monthly active users have risen 180 percent from the prior year, closely trailed by Gemini’s 170 percent jump.
That said, ChatGPT’s user base expanded just 6 percent between August and November, hitting about 810 million worldwide, which Sensor Tower interprets as a possible approach to peak market penetration. In contrast, Gemini’s users grew 30 percent in the same window, boosted by the rollout of its innovative image creation tool, Nano Banana.
Integration plays a role too: In the United States, Android device owners are twice as likely to interact with Gemini through the operating system itself rather than its dedicated app, giving Google an edge in regions where Android holds sway and reducing reliance on standalone downloads.
Looking broader, Gemini has boosted its slice of the AI chatbot pie, including rivals like ChatGPT, Microsoft’s Copilot, Anthropic’s Claude, Perplexity, and xAI’s Grok. From May to November 2025, it gained three percentage points in global monthly active user share. ChatGPT, meanwhile, shed three points over the shorter August-to-November stretch.
Other challengers are nipping at the heels as well. Perplexity’s app exploded with 370 percent year-over-year growth in 2025, while Claude notched 190 percent. On downloads, ChatGPT managed 85 percent growth year-over-year through November, falling short of the 110 percent average across top apps. Perplexity led with 215 percent, and Gemini followed at 190 percent.
User retention tells a similar story. Gemini app sessions have more than doubled recently, averaging 11 minutes daily by November, a 120 percent rise since March. Much of this ties back to Nano Banana’s debut, which propelled the app to new heights. ChatGPT’s daily time, however, only ticked up 6 percent overall and dipped 10 percent from July to November.
While Google’s advances stem largely from that image tool’s buzz, OpenAI has opportunities to reignite its momentum through upcoming releases. For now, the AI landscape remains fiercely contested, with innovation dictating the next moves.
