New research shows ChatGPT maintains dominant lead in global AI chatbot traffic despite competitor growth

A recent study by Graphite indicates that OpenAI's ChatGPT commands over 81% of the total traffic among major global AI chatbots, with no competitor reaching a 10% market share. This finding is notable given the rising prominence of rivals like Google Gemini and Anthropic Claude. Graphite's analysis, conducted by CEO Ethan Smith's team using Similarweb data, shows ChatGPT's monthly visits grew nearly 20% this year, hitting a record 61.35 billion in September. Furthermore, the platform is increasingly driving external traffic, accounting for 60% of the 92% global increase in external referrals from AI services over the past year. While competitors like Claude and Gemini have seen rapid expansion, these gains started from a much lower base. Globally, total monthly visits across major AI services reached 76 billion, marking a 37% year-over-year increase. The research also highlighted that while the US accounts for only 8.8% of global AI traffic, Google's AI Overviews are present in 62% of US search queries, and AI Mode garnered 491 million US web visits in August.