ChatGPT app downloads are slowing down, BofA finds

AI may be the hottest thing in the tech industry, but OpenAI’s ChatGPT isn’t able to challenge on Google grip as the search engine leader, according to a new analysis by Bank of America Securities.

Analysts found app downloads for ChatGPT and Microsoft Bing have slowed in recent weeks, citing data from Sensor Tower, BofA analyst Justin Post wrote in a note on Wednesday.

US iPhone downloads of ChatGPT were down 38% month-over-month in June, according to the note. Downloads of Bing apps that include a ChatGPT-based chatbot in the US also fell 38% in June.

Google’s search engine market share rose slightly over the year to over 92%, according to the note, citing data from SimilarWeb. Microsoft’s Bing, which uses OpenAI’s ChatGPT technology, fell 40 basis points year over year to about 2.8% of the market.

Slowing attention to ChatGPT and similar large language models, or LLMs, highlights the investment risk for companies like Google and Microsoft, who poured billions of dollars into the idea that recent AI advances could create a next-generation search engine to displace the current winner. Both companies, as well as other tech giants such as Nvidiaare also investing hundreds of millions in AI startups.

But if adoption of ChatGPT is already slowing, that could mean the technology may not seriously threaten Google’s dominance in search — and companies may have to find other uses for LLM, such as in new tools for advertisers, the analysts wrote.

“As for Google stock, LLM’s concerns about Google search seem to have shifted from market share risk to monetization risk, but with search share looking healthy, Google may have less urgency to integrate results from LLM (Chat) in Trade Enquiries,” Post wrote in a Note.

The ChatGPT app was released in May and so far is only available for iPhone. Bank of America analysts believe an upcoming OpenAI app for Android could drive adoption.

Apart from the app or the Bing search engine, ChatGPT users can also access the chatbot through its website. Bank of America analysts estimate that visits to ChatGPT are down about 11% month-over-month to just over 51 million visitors per week, or just about 2% of Google’s estimated web traffic.