OpenAI, in collaboration with economist David Deming (Harvard) and the NBER, has released a groundbreaking report based on an analysis of 1.5 million anonymized conversations from May 2024 to June 20251. The goal: to understand not only who uses ChatGPT, but how, in what contexts, and for what purposes. The document stands as the largest survey ever conducted on the use of conversational AI by the general public2.
This approach marks a departure from previous methods: until now, most of the available data was based on surveys or traffic estimates. Here, OpenAI directly measures conversational patterns while preserving user privacy; no human has access to the raw messages, and the labeling is automated.
Primarily for personal use, rather than professional use
The report reveals a clear shift: in June 2025, 73% of messages exchanged on ChatGPT were related to non-professional uses, compared with 53% a year earlier3. This confirms that AI is moving beyond its role as a productivity tool to become part of everyday life, where people ask practical questions, seek advice, stay informed, and interact on a personal level.
Nevertheless, about 30% of its use is still related to professional tasks (writing, summarizing, decision-making)4. The study also notes that “personal” use is growing faster than “professional” use, a sign that users are adopting the tool on their own initiative.
Three major categories of usage
The conversations observed fall primarily into three categories: practical advice, information seeking, and writing/editing. Together, these three categories account for approximately 77% of all messages5.
- Practical tips: 28.3%
- Information search: from 14% in 2024 to 24% in 2025
- Writing/editing: slight decline (from ~36% to ~24%)
ChatGPT thus stands out as a tool for guidance and exploration, rather than simply a writing assistant.
An evolving audience: gender, geography, and growing adoption
Several demographic trends are emerging:
- In July 2025, 52% of weekly active users had first names identified as female6.
- The number of messages rose from 451 million per day in June 2024 to 2.6 billion in June 20256.
- ChatGPT now has more than 700 million active users each week6.
The tool is becoming widely available worldwide, including in areas where access to advanced technologies had previously been limited. This reflects rapid adoption beyond the initial waves of adoption in the West.
From data to future decisions: what do these trends reveal?
This study offers much more than just a snapshot of user behavior. It reveals tensions, expectations, and hybrid uses that will shape the future of AI:
- The rise of conversational AI positions ChatGPT as a competitor to traditional search engines, with the associated risks (hallucinations, bias).
- The coexistence of personal and business use requires a differentiation in offerings, pricing, and service levels.
- Personal use sometimes touches on sensitive areas (health, psychology, relationships), raising the question of algorithmic accountability.
- The growing diversity of profiles calls for greater efforts in linguistic and cultural adaptation.
AI as a tool, a companion, and a driver of change
This extensive study conducted by OpenAI does more than just provide usage statistics. It implicitly outlines the contours of a new relationship between humans and artificial intelligence. By revealing that the majority of uses are now personal, contextual, and exploratory, it confirms that ChatGPT is no longer perceived as a mere technical tool, but as a hybrid interlocutor, capable of supporting thought, facilitating action, and sometimes structuring decision-making.
With 2.6 billion messages exchanged every day, more than 700 million weekly users, and applications that span both everyday life and professional work, conversational AI is entering a phase of social normalization. It is becoming an integral part of our routines, our habits, and our cognitive expectations.
But this ubiquity also poses new challenges: ensuring reliability, preventing bias, fostering critical thinking among users, and designing interfaces that are suited to the diversity of usage contexts.
ChatGPT is no longer just an emerging technological phenomenon. It is becoming a global cognitive infrastructure, and its evolution will depend as much on its developers as on its millions of users, who, every day, are reinventing the way we “talk” to artificial intelligence.
Learn more
To further explore how users are adopting generative AI in their daily lives, check out our article:“Projects”: ChatGPT’s new free feature for organizing your ideas
There, you’ll see how OpenAI is adapting ChatGPT for long-form, structured, and collaborative use—a direct response to the evolving practices revealed by the study.
References
1. OpenAI & Deming. (2025). Large-Scale ChatGPT Usage Study.
https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/openai-shares-data-on-how-people-are-using-chatgpt-ai-chatbot/760193/
2. The Verge. (2025). OpenAI publishes its largest user report.
https://www.theverge.com/news/779793/openai-chatgpt-user-report
3. The Verge. (2025). OpenAI publishes its largest user report.
https://www.theverge.com/news/779793/openai-chatgpt-user-report
4. Indian Express. (2025). OpenAI reveals how ChatGPT is used.
https://indianexpress.com/article/technology/artificial-intelligence/openai-study-chatgpt-usage-trends-key-insights-data-10253385/
5. Social Media Today. (2025). ChatGPT Behavior Breakdown.
https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/openai-shares-data-on-how-people-are-using-chatgpt-ai-chatbot/760193/
6. Computing UK. (2025). ChatGPT usage by gender.
https://www.computing.co.uk/news/2025/ai/openai-reveals-what-chatgpt-users-look-for