OpenAI Steps Into the Browser Wars With ChatGPT Atlas

OpenAI has stepped into the browser market with ChatGPT Atlas, a new platform that combines web access with the company’s conversational model. The browser is now available on macOS, with versions for Windows, iOS, and Android expected later.

The release places OpenAI in direct competition with Google, which has dominated browsing for years through Chrome. Atlas arrives as part of OpenAI’s push to make everyday computing more interactive, turning what used to be search and click into a simple chat exchange.

How Atlas Works

Atlas looks familiar at first glance but behaves differently once opened. The main screen centers around a chat bar, allowing users to ask questions, summarize pages, or type in a web address. Instead of switching tabs or copying text into ChatGPT, users can talk to the browser as they move across sites.

Atlas can import bookmarks and history from Chrome or Safari, creating a base of personalized data that helps the model respond with context. The memory feature is optional, giving users the ability to decide what the browser remembers. The system remains inconsistent in early use but shows OpenAI’s intent to make web interactions feel personal and fluid.

Agent Mode Inside the Browser

OpenAI has been preparing for a world built around AI agents, and Atlas brings that idea into the browser. Through its “agent mode,” Atlas can complete actions on the page, such as compiling a shopping list from a recipe or helping write a message inside Gmail.

These capabilities are currently limited to ChatGPT Business, Plus, and Pro users. OpenAI is developing ways to connect agents directly with online platforms, suggesting a future where chat assistants take care of common browsing tasks without requiring separate apps or extensions.

A Challenge to Google’s Core Business

Atlas arrives at a time when Google’s Chrome is under increasing scrutiny. Chrome still holds the largest user base, but its updates have been slow compared with OpenAI’s rapid rollout of AI tools. By building search and interaction into a conversation, Atlas removes the need for a traditional search results page.

That change could affect Google’s advertising model, which depends on search traffic and page visits. If even a small percentage of ChatGPT’s hundreds of millions of users move their browsing to Atlas, Google would lose both data and reach. It would also face a challenge in adapting its products to an interface that no longer relies on static search queries.

What Makes Atlas Different

Atlas can view what is on a webpage and respond in real time, allowing OpenAI to collect data on how users interact with the internet. This gives the company more insight into browsing habits while creating a pathway for new revenue models, including potential ad services. OpenAI has not announced plans to introduce ads, but recent hiring in its advertising division suggests the company is preparing for that possibility.

Despite the new features, Atlas keeps a standard browser layout with tabs and a clean interface. It feels more like an evolution of ChatGPT than a complete reinvention of web navigation. Competing products such as Opera’s AI tools and Perplexity’s Comet browser show that OpenAI is entering a growing field, but its scale and existing user base make Atlas a stronger contender.

The Start of a New Browser Phase

OpenAI calls Atlas the first stage of a larger experiment. It blends the familiarity of web navigation with a conversational model that makes browsing feel immediate. Whether people adopt it widely depends on how much they value talking to their browser rather than typing commands.

For now, Atlas represents a major shift in how one of the most influential AI companies sees the future of web use. It is not just a browser with an AI plug-in but a platform built on conversation itself, signaling that the next phase of the internet may start from a chat window.

Notes: This post was edited/created using GenAI tools.

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by Irfan Ahmad via Digital Information World

How Often Does ChatGPT Search the Internet? New Data Gives a Clear Answer

When most people open ChatGPT, they assume it already knows everything. But a new data study shows the chatbot still turns to the internet more often than many realize. Researchers found that in nearly one out of every three prompts, ChatGPT performs an online search to gather extra information before answering.

Tracking ChatGPT’s Search Behavior

To measure how often this happens, analysts at Nectiv examined more than 8,500 user prompts across nine major industries, including travel, fashion, software, and local services. They used an internal tool that detects when ChatGPT connects to external sources to look up facts. Each time the model reached beyond its own knowledge, the system recorded a “search instance.”

Across all of those prompts, 31 percent led to at least one web lookup. This means ChatGPT relies on live data far more than many users realize.

How Many Searches Per Question?

The same study revealed that ChatGPT rarely stops at a single search. On average, it carried out just over two separate queries... 2.17 per prompt, to be precise. In a few cases, the number went as high as four. These repeated lookups, called fan-out searches, help the model verify or expand its answers when information is incomplete.

For example, if a person asks for the best phone brands in 2025, ChatGPT may check multiple product pages, comparison lists, or recent reviews before forming its response.

Searches That Are Longer and More Specific

ChatGPT’s search phrases are noticeably longer than a normal Google search. The study found the average query length was 5.48 words, roughly 60 percent longer than the U.S. average of 3.4 words. In total, about 77 percent of its searches contained five words or more.

That suggests ChatGPT forms detailed, focused questions, closer to how a skilled internet user searches rather than a casual one. Typical examples include “top car rental Turkey reviews” or “best ecommerce software 2025 features.”

Which Topics Trigger the Most Searches

Not all subjects push ChatGPT to search equally. Local information caused the most lookups, about 59 percent of local prompts triggered a web search. Commerce-related requests came next at 41 percent. At the other end, only 18 percent of credit-card questions and 19 percent of fashion topics led to searches.

This pattern shows ChatGPT depends most on real-time data for areas that change frequently, such as nearby businesses or current products.

How Deep It Digs in Each Field

Even though local searches were most frequent, they tended to involve fewer follow-up queries... about 1.67 on average. By contrast, questions about jobs, careers, and software often led to three or more searches per prompt. Those fields usually require complex comparisons and up-to-date details, which explains the higher activity.

What ChatGPT Looks for Online

When analyzing the words inside those thousands of search phrases, researchers saw recurring themes. Many contained terms such as “reviews,” “comparison,” “features,” and the current year “2025.” These keywords show that ChatGPT favors fresh, review-style, and product-oriented content when seeking supporting information.

In simple terms, it behaves like a digital researcher checking multiple recent sources before forming an answer.

Why These Findings Matter

Understanding when ChatGPT searches helps explain how it builds its answers. The model does not rely only on its stored knowledge; instead, it supplements it by scanning the web for updates. For website owners and marketers, that means optimizing content for detailed, review-based, and current-year searches could make it more visible to AI systems.

For ordinary users, the results show ChatGPT is less of a static knowledge bank and more of an active information finder that continually checks the internet to stay relevant.

The Bigger Picture

In the end, the numbers give a clear picture. ChatGPT is not only generating text but also performing its own background research. Roughly one-third of the time, it steps out to the internet, sends out a couple of searches, and pulls in longer, more specific results.

That makes it less like a traditional chatbot and more like a hybrid search assistant, one that mixes stored intelligence with real-time exploration to produce its answers.

Notes: This post was edited/created using GenAI tools.

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The Internet’s “Most Human Place” Faces Its Most Inhuman Challenge Yet

Reddit, long celebrated as the internet’s vast collective brain, is confronting a quiet identity crisis. The arrival of AI-generated posts has blurred the line between human conversation and machine-made mimicry, forcing the platform’s volunteer moderators to redefine what authenticity means in a digital commons.

A recent study from Cornell University and Northeastern University reveals how moderators across some of Reddit’s most active communities are struggling to contain a new kind of disruption. Drawing on in-depth interviews with fifteen moderators overseeing more than a hundred subreddits, researchers found that most view generative AI as a “triple threat”... one that erodes content quality, undermines social trust, and complicates governance.

The Strain of Invisible Labor

Reddit’s decentralized system depends on tens of thousands of unpaid moderators who keep discussions civil, remove misinformation, and enforce community rules. Those tasks were already challenging before generative AI began flooding the internet with polished but hollow text. Now, moderators say they’re facing a subtler kind of spam, plausible, eloquent, and often wrong.

Travis Lloyd, a doctoral researcher at Cornell and lead author of the study, said moderators are confronting a paradox that is AI content looks real enough to pass as human but empty enough to distort the culture that holds these communities together. Many moderators admitted that identifying AI posts takes hours of manual review, while the tools meant to detect them often fail or flag innocent users.

One moderator from r/explainlikeimfive called AI content “the most threatening concern,” not because it’s frequent, but because it quietly changes the rhythm of human exchange. Others echoed that sentiment, describing AI posts as verbose yet soulless — a flood of text that drowns genuine conversation.

Quality, Connection, and Control

The study identified three intertwined anxieties. The first is quality: moderators repeatedly described AI posts as generic, inaccurate, or off-topic. Communities that prize expertise, such as r/AskHistorians, see these posts as a risk to credibility. “Truth-looking nonsense,” as one moderator described it, can spread quickly when wrapped in confident prose.

The second anxiety lies in social dynamics. Many moderators worry that AI-generated dialogue cheapens what makes Reddit distinct - its sense of human presence. Communities built on personal exchange, like r/changemyview or creative spaces such as r/WritingPrompts, fear that automation erodes the empathy and spontaneity that attract members in the first place. As one moderator put it, “How can we change your view when it isn’t even yours?”

The third challenge is governance. Moderators have long battled spam and harassment, but AI has supercharged these old problems. Some described “bot attacks” that used large-language models to generate persuasive propaganda or to inflate fake popularity through karma-farming. Others pointed to subtle forms of trolling or covert marketing disguised as casual conversation. Detecting these incursions often requires judgment calls that blur the line between moderation and detective work.

The Arms Race of Detection

Without reliable detection tools, moderators rely on instinct — looking for repetitive phrasing, stylistic oddities, or abrupt changes in a user’s tone. These cues work for now, but most acknowledge they’re temporary. “There has to be a lot that we’re missing,” one moderator admitted, capturing the unease that gives the paper its title.

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Even automated filters like Reddit’s “AutoModerator” help only so much. They can spot patterns, but not nuance. False positives risk alienating genuine users, especially non-native English speakers whose writing may differ from the community norm. The researchers warn that such biases could deepen existing inequalities online, echoing older studies showing that moderation often falls hardest on marginalized groups.

Human-Only Spaces in a Machine Age

Not every moderator sees AI as the enemy. A few expressed cautious optimism about its potential as a translation tool or writing aid, especially for users whose ideas outpace their English skills. Yet even those sympathetic voices agreed that intent matters... AI is acceptable when used transparently, not when it impersonates a person.

Still, most communities have opted to draw hard lines. Some, like r/WritingPrompts, ban AI outright to preserve the act of human creativity itself. Others, such as r/AskHistorians, tolerate limited use when it supports genuine expertise. In both cases, the rulemaking process has become a kind of civic negotiation, with moderators and users redefining what counts as authentic participation.

A Platform at a Crossroads

The broader question for Reddit is whether the site can remain, in its own words, “the most human place on the internet.” The platform’s leadership has echoed moderators’ concerns, acknowledging that AI threatens to erode the trust that gives Reddit its value. Yet solutions remain elusive. Detection tools are unreliable, volunteer labor is overstretched, and the platform’s business interests may not always align with its community ethos.

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The researchers suggest that the healthiest path forward may lie in autonomy: letting each community decide how much AI it will tolerate, and giving moderators better design support to enforce those norms. Interface cues, such as visible “no-AI” labels or rule prompts before posting, could help members stay aligned without heavy-handed policing.

The Search for Effort and Authenticity

What stands out most in the study is not despair but persistence. Even as they face an impossible workload, moderators express a deep belief in human connection. They talk about “effortful communication”... the idea that sincerity online often shows through the time and care a person invests in writing something themselves. That effort, they argue, is what separates Reddit from the algorithmic noise elsewhere.

The irony is that AI may be forcing communities to rediscover precisely what makes them human. As Lloyd and his co-authors conclude, people still crave interaction with other people, and that craving drives them to build “human-only spaces” even when the internet itself is filling with machines.

Reddit’s future may depend on how well it protects that fragile, very human instinct... to tell when a voice on the other side of the screen truly belongs to someone real.

Notes: This post was edited/created using GenAI tools.

Image: DIW-Aigen.

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How Everyday Typing Patterns Could Help Track Brain Health

How people type on their phones could reveal more than just their texting habits. A new study from the University of Illinois Chicago, published in the Journal of Psychopathology and Clinical Science, suggests that patterns in smartphone typing may help detect early cognitive changes associated with depression and bipolar disorder. The findings open a new direction in mental health research, showing how ordinary digital behavior might offer a window into how the brain functions day to day.

Tracking cognition through ordinary behavior

Mood disorders often affect thinking speed, memory, and decision-making. Traditional ways to assess these skills involve paper tests or computer programs that measure attention and flexibility under lab conditions. While effective, these tests require time, controlled environments, and direct participation from patients, which limits how often they can be used.

The research team set out to find whether digital traces from everyday smartphone use could capture the same information without requiring people to take formal tests. They focused on a custom mobile app known as BiAffect, which records metadata about typing behavior... such as the time between keystrokes and the frequency of phone movement during typing.

Over a period of four to five weeks, 127 adults used BiAffect as their default keyboard. Some participants had mood disorders including depression or bipolar disorder, while others were healthy volunteers. Each person completed two in-person lab visits during which they performed standardized cognitive tests, such as the NIH Toolbox and the Trail Making Test Part B, both widely used to evaluate mental flexibility, working memory, and processing speed.

Patterns that reflect thinking speed

Researchers analyzed the data using statistical modeling to find links between typing features and cognitive performance. The two most telling indicators were how quickly people typed and how often they used their keyboard. Faster typing generally reflected sharper processing speed and mental agility.

Among healthy participants, slower typing corresponded with lower scores on the NIH Toolbox tests, while frequent typing was tied to stronger cognitive performance. Together, these digital patterns explained more than forty percent of the variation in thinking ability across the healthy group by the second lab visit.

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However, the link between typing behavior and test performance was weaker in participants with mood disorders. Their typing data showed more inconsistency, suggesting that daily fluctuations in symptoms, medication effects, or emotional states may blur the connection between phone behavior and cognitive function.

The Trail Making insight

When the researchers turned to the Trail Making Test Part B — a task that measures mental flexibility and speed by having people draw alternating sequences of numbers and letters... the pattern changed. Typing behavior predicted performance on this test in both groups, regardless of diagnosis. Those who typed more slowly or more frequently tended to take longer to finish the paper test.

As the study noted, “typing speed reliably predicts processing speed and executive function,” and this relationship became stronger as depressive symptoms increased. The result points to executive function (the ability to plan, shift focus, and manage complex tasks) as a domain where digital patterns may reveal meaningful clues.

Why mood affects the link

According to the researchers, cognitive performance in mood disorders may fluctuate more because of symptom changes, stress, or treatment differences. These variations could explain why typing patterns predict cognition more clearly in healthy individuals. The team emphasized that these inconsistencies highlight a need to move beyond simple diagnostic labels and to track symptoms continuously over time.

They also found that people with higher depression scores showed a stronger connection between slower typing and poorer cognitive flexibility. This observation suggests that passive smartphone data might capture subtle changes in brain function as mood symptoms shift, even within the same person.

Limitations and next steps

The study ran for about a month, a relatively short period for detecting long-term changes in cognition. Most participants were well educated, which might have helped them compensate for mild impairments. Future research, the authors noted, will need longer monitoring and more diverse participants to understand how generalizable these results are.

The researchers acknowledged that not all mental skills can be detected through typing. The NIH Toolbox includes different types of tasks, and not all depend on the same cognitive processes involved in typing. That means smartphone data may be best suited for tracking certain abilities, such as processing speed and executive control, rather than overall intelligence or memory.

Everyday technology as a mental health tool

Despite its limits, the study demonstrates the potential of passive digital monitoring to complement traditional neuropsychological testing. Because people type on their phones many times a day, this approach could allow for continuous observation without disrupting normal routines.

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The authors described smartphone data as “an ecologically valid, passive measure of cognitive function” that could help clinicians notice changes earlier than conventional tests. Subtle shifts in typing rhythm, for example, might one day alert healthcare providers that a patient’s thinking speed is slowing or that a depressive episode may be developing.

Using such methods could reduce the need for frequent clinic visits and enable personalized care. For patients living with mood disorders, it might also offer reassurance that their everyday actions (like texting a friend or writing a note) carry information that can support their treatment in real time.

The broader meaning

What makes this research stand out is how it connects routine digital behavior to the complexity of human cognition. Rather than relying solely on lab-based tools, it recognizes that our smartphones have become constant companions that record subtle aspects of how we move, think, and interact.

The researchers view typing as more than a habit... it is a reflection of mental coordination involving attention, planning, and motor control. If analyzed responsibly and ethically, such data could help identify changes long before they become visible in clinical settings.

The study adds to a growing field known as digital phenotyping, where everyday technology is used to understand patterns of behavior and mental health. It suggests that one day, how we type might quietly tell a story about how our brains are coping, adapting, or recovering... a story written in every keystroke.

Notes: This post was edited/created using GenAI tools.

Image: Faustina Okeke - unsplash

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Can Blockchain Blend Into Daily Digital Life Just Like AI?

Tech has become so ingrained in daily lives that people can hardly imagine life without it. There are so many little ways that it shows up now that it hardly even gets noticed. Your email completes your sentences, your maps silently re-routed you when there was a traffic jam, and your lights turned on when you simply demanded them to do so. This is how AI silently slipped into daily routines without attracting a lot of attention.

Blockchain, however, has not yet blended in as quietly. It still feels like something discussed mainly by tech enthusiasts and professionals. But that perception is starting to change as blockchain tools become more practical and accessible. One example is that more people are using crypto wallets.

These digital wallets make it easier for people to store, send, and receive digital assets without needing deep technical knowledge. For instance, a Polygon wallet download today is as easy as installing a new banking app. This shows how everyday users are beginning to interact with blockchain technology more naturally.

The question is, will blockchain blend into daily life the same way AI has? Will it move from being seen as the future of technology to just another part of how people live, shop, and transfer money?

Image by Yourphoto on Freepik

AI Has Already Become a Daily Habit

There are so many ways AI has quietly slipped into daily life: the playlists that know your taste, your phone suggesting what to type next, or your maps rerouting you before traffic even builds up. It’s everywhere: in your Netflix recommendations, your social media feeds, and even in your spam folder, sorting out what’s junk and what’s not. According to Stanford’s 2025 AI Index Report , 78% of organizations now use AI in at least one business function.

What’s interesting is that no one really thinks about it anymore. People don’t wake up and say, “I’m using AI today.” They just use it without noticing. It’s part of what happens now, like electricity or Wi-Fi — you only notice it when it’s gone. That’s how AI won people over. It made life easier without asking for too much.

Blockchain Everyday Use Cases Are Already Here

The reality is, most people are already using blockchain without even realizing it. Some online games run on it. Certain concert tickets are NFTs. Even a few store loyalty programs quietly use blockchain to track rewards. It’s not so noticeable, it's just there. The global blockchain market hit $31.28 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow rapidly by 2030. That kind of growth shows one thing: that blockchain isn’t waiting to be discovered; it’s already here, and here to stay.

That’s exactly how new technology sticks. As soon as it begins to appear in the things that people already do, such as shopping, gaming, and streaming, it no longer feels complicated. Nobody even speaks about the internet every time they open an application, right? Blockchain is heading in the same direction.

And it’s not even about hype anymore. It’s about making life a little smoother, one app update at a time.

Making Blockchain Simple Enough for Everyone

Technology only feels complicated until someone makes it simple enough for everyone to use. That’s why AI became part of daily life so fast, and people didn’t have to learn anything new. It just blended in. You speak, and the voice assistant listens. You type, and the suggestion appears. There’s no extra step.

Blockchain, in turn, is something that you have to be tutored on. The words sound technical, and the process looks confusing. But that’s slowly changing. New exchange and wallet apps now have clean designs and quick sign-ins, and better security means people don’t have to worry so much about mistakes.

It is not about understanding all of the details of the way it works; it is about it being natural. But it might take a while before blockchain becomes a part of everyday life, but very soon, the usage of blockchain will be as straightforward as sending a text or the process of making an online payment.

Trust and Transparency: The Real Selling Points

AI is largely predictive; it tries to guess what you would want to say or say next. Blockchain, however, is all about evidence. All the actions are documented, transparent, and traceable. You have the opportunity to know what, when, and by whom it was approved. This type of sincerity is not common on the internet.

This is what makes blockchain special. It can make paying, signing digital contracts, or even proving your identity safer. Instead of relying on a company to “promise” that your data is secure, you can actually see the record for yourself.

It’s the same kind of confidence people already have when they log into online banking or use an AI assistant that just works. The difference is that with blockchain, trust isn’t given; it’s built into the system itself.

What Still Holds It Back

Like most new things, blockchain has yet to go through some bumps on the road. There are those who do not trust it yet due to the scams and hacks they have heard about. For example, earlier this year, hackers stole $1.5 billion worth of Ethereum from crypto exchange Bybit.

Others believe that it is too complex or sluggish. And then there is regulation; the rules are not yet sorted, making businesses concerned about putting their feet in the water.

However, these are not lasting problems. With each passing month, transactions are becoming faster and safer with new updates, and government regulations are becoming more crypto-friendly. Big tech companies are also collaborating with blockchain startups to ensure that it becomes easier for all.

It is just like how AI needed time to find its rhythm; as soon as the tools got simpler and more reliable, people began using them without even realizing it. Blockchain is just taking time to reach that same direction. When it does, it will no longer be technology; it will simply be life.

[Partner Content]

by Web Desk via Digital Information World

AI and Tech Giants Tighten Their Grip on Brand Loyalty in 2025

Artificial intelligence and major technology platforms now dominate consumer loyalty in the United States. The latest Brand Keys Loyalty Leaders report shows Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and ChatGPT leading a field once filled by traditional names. Their growing influence reflects how customer attachment has shifted toward digital ecosystems that learn, adapt, and respond in real time.

The 2025 study surveyed more than seventy-seven thousand consumers who rated nearly fifteen hundred brands across multiple sectors. Amazon kept its position at the top of the list, while Google and Microsoft followed close behind. These companies continue to use AI to personalize search, shopping, and software experiences, strengthening the emotional link between users and their digital environments.

ChatGPT made the sharpest rise among the top brands, moving from fortieth to eighth place. Its daily use across work, learning, and creative tasks has turned interaction into habit. That constant presence appears to generate familiarity similar to how people once felt about household names. Generative AI tools, designed to respond contextually, seem to foster recognition rather than repetition.

AI Drives a New Kind of Loyalty

The research indicates that brand trust now forms around prediction and personalization. In earlier years, loyalty often came from price, convenience, or marketing campaigns. Today it grows through platforms that anticipate needs and offer timely suggestions. AI makes that possible by adjusting to a person’s intent, tone, or setting in ways static programs never could.

Google’s move to second place reflects that change. Its services combine search, maps, communication, and AI-powered assistance across devices. Microsoft’s strong ranking shows similar patterns as users rely on its cloud and productivity tools to organize daily life. Together, these firms anchor the technological side of loyalty, where dependability and integration matter more than slogans.

Social Platforms Gain Ground

Social media and streaming platforms also hold their place in the loyalty landscape. TikTok remains among the most followed brands, built on an algorithm that continuously refines what people see. Paramount+ gained traction through consistent personalization, showing how entertainment loyalty depends less on content libraries and more on how systems recognize viewing habits. These examples underline how attention and interaction now build lasting consumer ties.

Predictive Connection Replaces Routine Loyalty

AI bridges what analysts call the loyalty gap—the space between customer expectations and brand performance. Instead of waiting for feedback, platforms adjust immediately, often before users notice a need. That sense of responsiveness builds trust faster than traditional programs ever managed. It explains why technology companies, especially those leading in AI development, dominate the upper end of the ranking.

Nearly all top-ranked brands operate in data-driven sectors. Their strength lies in creating experiences that feel individualized. As users rely on apps and assistants to handle everyday decisions, their relationship with technology becomes reciprocal. Each interaction refines the system, and in turn, the system reflects the user’s preferences more accurately.

The Loyalty Map of 2025

The 2025 list confirms how far digital platforms have advanced in shaping consumer behavior. Loyalty has become an outcome of interaction, not advertising. For most U.S. consumers, commitment now depends on how smoothly technology fits into daily life. As AI blends with communication, shopping, and entertainment, brand choice increasingly depends on consistent performance and trust in automated systems.

The pattern is clear. Loyalty in 2025 belongs to companies that make technology personal and dependable. The closer AI comes to understanding human behavior, the stronger the bond between users and the brands that serve them.

Brand (Category)	2025	2024
Amazon (Online Retail)	1	2
Google (Search Engines)	2	25
Microsoft (Computers)	3	32
Apple (Smartphones)	4	1
Coca-Cola (Soft Drinks)	5	81
Samsung (Smartphones)	6	7
Paramount+ (Streaming Video)	7	74
ChatGPT (AI)	8	40
TikTok (Social Networking)	9	3
Levi Strauss (Apparel Retailers)	10	8
Discover (Credit Cards)	11	12
McDonald's (Quick Serve)	12	31
Netflix (Video Streaming)	13	5
PayPal (Online Payments)	14	21
Dunkin' (Coffee)	15	9
Disney+ (Streaming Video)	16	20
Hyundai (Automotive)	17	11
Walmart.com (Online Retail)	18	27
Toyota (Automotive)	19	26
Domino's (Pizza)	20	4
Trader Joe's (Natural Foods)	21	13
Nike (Athletic Footwear)	22	18
Home Depot (Retail Home Improvement)	23	15
American Express (Credit Cards)	24	19
Jeep (Automotive)	25	33
Hulu (Video Streaming)	26	35
Samsung (Computers)	27	38
Ford (Automotive)	28	17
Apple TV (Streaming Video)	29	22
YouTube (Social Networking)	30	6
Amazon (Video Streaming)	31	16
WhatsApp (Instant Messaging)	32	14
MSNBC (Cable News)	33	24
Amazon (Tablets)	34	34
Apple (Computers)	35	43
Crest (Toothpaste)	36	45
FOX (TV News)	37	23
FedEx (Delivery Services)	38	47
Subaru (Automotive)	39	56
Modelo Esp. (Beer - Reg.)	40	67

Notes: This post was edited/created using GenAI tools.

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Claude’s Small Crowd Is Paying Big, and That’s Changing the AI Race

Anthropic’s Claude has gradually built a profitable position in the crowded AI market. It may not draw the attention that ChatGPT or Grok receive, but its financial performance tells a different story. Despite having far fewer users, Claude generates almost as much revenue per person as OpenAI’s flagship app, which shows that scale alone no longer defines success in this field.

Appfigures estimates that Claude has around fifteen million downloads, compared with nearly eight hundred million for ChatGPT. Yet each of Claude’s installs brings in roughly two dollars and ninety-seven cents in net revenue, close to ChatGPT’s three dollars and fourteen cents. Grok and Perplexity earn less than a dollar per user, which places Anthropic in a far stronger position than many expected. In September, Claude users spent an estimated five and a half million dollars through Apple’s and Google’s stores, reflecting steady in-app income despite limited reach.

OpenAI’s financial structure remains far larger, backed by about one trillion dollars’ worth of commercial agreements and a valuation near five hundred billion dollars, the highest for any private company. Anthropic, supported by its own investors including Amazon and Google, holds a valuation around one hundred eighty-three billion, yet its growth rate has been sharper. The company’s annual revenue run rate stood near one billion dollars at the end of 2024, reached about three billion by mid-2025, and is now estimated at seven billion as of October. Forecasts suggest it could hit nine billion by year-end. OpenAI’s revenue run rate rose from roughly five and a half billion in January to about twelve billion by July, but the gap between the two is shrinking quickly.

The pace of change is striking. OpenAI first reached the one-billion-dollar annual level in mid-2023. Anthropic achieved the same milestone a year later, then multiplied that figure several times within twelve months. The company’s internal target of twenty-six billion in yearly revenue by 2026 now looks ambitious but not unrealistic.

Chart: Sherwood

Part of that momentum comes from the way Anthropic has positioned Claude. The app draws a smaller but more committed audience, made up largely of professionals and developers who use it for practical work. These users are more inclined to pay for subscriptions and advanced features, creating higher average returns than broader consumer bases typically deliver. That kind of focused monetization gives Anthropic an efficiency that few competitors have managed to match.

Sustaining this level of performance will be difficult once the user base expands. Growth often attracts casual users who spend less, which can reduce the per-user average. Yet if Anthropic can preserve even part of that revenue ratio while scaling, it will keep its business healthier than rivals with far larger followings.

The competition between OpenAI and Anthropic now defines the economic core of the AI industry. OpenAI’s size and valuation still set it apart, but Anthropic’s disciplined strategy shows that financial strength can come from depth rather than reach. Claude may never rival ChatGPT in total downloads, yet it has already proven that profitability per user can be just as powerful a measure of success.

Notes: This post was edited/created using GenAI tools.

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