While the top AI trends for the enterprise include Agentic AI and AI governance platforms, Generative AI has passed the peak of inflated expectations. GenAI algorithm ChatGPT, with its significant impact on the current AI boom, has become a new universal tool for work-related and private purposes. Discover how people around the world use ChatGPT and which patterns remain and shift.
ChatGPT’s rapid rise
Since OpenAI launched ChatGPT in November 2022, the world of artificial intelligence has never been the same. By July 2025, more than 700 million people, about 10% of the adult world population, used the popular chatbot every week, generating a total of 18 billion messages per week.
How do people use ChatGPT? Researchers from OpenAI, Harvard, and Duke University delved deep into millions of conversations and mapped not only the statistics, but also the changing role and impact of ChatGPT on our daily lives, work, and well-being.
ChatGPT as a new universal tool
Initially seeming a tool for technology enthusiasts and knowledge workers, ChatGPT quickly evolved into a universal resource for people of all ages. No type of digital technology has ever spread this quickly.
While ChatGPT was initially strongly associated with professional contexts such as programming and copywriting, recent analysis shows that ChatGPT is primarily used for personal purposes.
Spectacular growth and shifts in the adoption of ChatGPT
- Explosive growth: the number of messages sent rose by more than 500% between July 2024 and July 2025.
- Widespread adoption: ChatGPT is present in all regions, from low-income countries to high-tech hubs, and the difference in usage is rapidly diminishing.
- Gender shift: at the end of 2022, 80% of users had a male first name. In July 2025, 52% of users had a female first name.
- Demographically diverse: the largest group of users is under the age of 26. The gap with older users is increasingly narrowing.
Non-work-related use of ChatGPT dominates
One of the most striking insights from the study is the dominance of non-work-related conversations. In June 2024, the share of private use was 53%, but a year later it had risen to 73%. ChatGPT is therefore not only becoming embedded in our jobs, but is also playing an increasingly significant role in our everyday lives:
- Practical advice (28% of all conversations): from homework to sports exercises, from cooking to lifestyle tips. People use ChatGPT as an advisor or coach for about every aspect of daily life.
- Searching for information (21%): the LLM chatbot is often used as an alternative to traditional search engines to quickly find answers to everyday questions such as “What is the best way to repair my bicycle tire?” or “How does filing a tax return work?”
- Writing (28%): help with drafting, improving, or summarizing texts and emails, with two-thirds of writing tasks revolving around editing or shortening existing text.
- Relationships & feelings (1.9%): remarkably few conversations are about emotional support or relationship advice. Expectations of AI as a friend or therapist appear to be limited (for now).
Work-related use: ChatGPT as an ally of knowledge workers
Although the proportion of work-related conversations is declining in relation to private use (27% in June 2025), ChatGPT remains a powerful ally. Knowledge workers in particular use ChatGPT. Usually not to have the work done for them, but to seek advice, gather ideas, or make decisions:
- Writing: for professionals, it usually revolves around writing, reworking, or shortening texts. In management positions, more than half of all messages are related to copywriting.
- Decision support: people don’t simply ask to draft a report of other document but rather want advice on the possible disadvantages of a specific approach or alternatives for the approach they have in mind.
- Programming (4%): assistance with writing programs accounts for only a small minority of the total message flow. This is certainly the case when compared to competing AI systems such as Claude from Anthropic.
Major differences between sectors and AI applications
Those who use ChatGPT in a business context most often do so in knowledge-intensive sectors such as consulting, science, IT, and management. The emphasis there is on gathering information, analyzing it, and making structured decisions. Less so on purely executive work.
Asking, doing, or expressing. Researchers divided all conversations into three main intentions:
- Asking (49%): The user asks a question, seeks advice, or wants to learn something.
- Doing (40%): The user gives an assignment, for example, to rewrite a text, make a schedule, etc.
- Expressing (11%): The user uses ChatGPT as a sounding board, for example, to assess an idea, share an opinion, or vent emotions.
This three-way split reveals a lot about our relationship with AI. We often seek something new or a different perspective, and ChatGPT also serves as a source of inspiration.
Highly educated users & intelligent questions.
Users with higher education in knowledge-intensive professions are more likely to ask questions than to give assignments or do things. They use ChatGPT as a co-thinker. A co-pilot who provides direction in turbulent times.
Economic impact of ChatGPT
The social and economic value of ChatGPT is considerable. According to estimates, the tool will generate a surplus of more than $97 billion for American consumers in 2024 alone. Although users partially look for value at work by leveraging ChatGPT, value creation in the private sphere is at least as great.
ChatGPT stimulates independent thinking, increases knowledge, and offers tailored assistance. For employers, researchers see an improvement in output thanks to better decision support and high-quality brainstorming.
ChatGPT as a co-pilot
The economic value is particularly evident when people use ChatGPT as an advisor or analyst. By structuring knowledge, testing scenarios, and offering alternatives, ChatGPT increases the quality of decisions. This effect is particularly pronounced in sectors where knowledge and judgment play an important role.
Diversity and democratization
The rise of ChatGPT is not just an American phenomenon. Its use is growing remarkably fast in low- and middle-income countries and transcends the traditional boundaries of gender, age, and profession:
- Equal opportunities: women use ChatGPT more often for writing and practical advice; men predominantly delve into technical assistance and multimedia.
- Faster growth in low-income countries: in these regions, usage is growing four times faster than in rich countries. This is a strong indication of the democratizing power of AI.
- Fundamental right of access: the research expresses the conviction that access to AI should become a basic right, given its positive impact on self-development and future opportunities.
Quality of interactions
The nature and quality of the conversation between users and ChatGPT have improved significantly in a brief period. In July 2025, the proportion of “good” interactions according to automatic sentiment analysis was four times higher than that of “bad” interactions. Interactions involving questions score highest in terms of satisfaction.
Critical notes from recent research on ChatGPT in practice
Despite its broad applicability, ChatGPT is not the AI tool for everything. For example, the proportion of messages about programming or code (4%) is small, which is striking when compared to Anthropic’s Claude, where 36% of conversations were about code. Emotional support and relaxation (games, role-playing) are niche applications for the time being.
In addition, researchers warn against excessive dependence on AI and the risk that people will think less deeply when the answer is always at their fingertips.
ChatGPT in action
- Students: assistance with homework, writing summaries, brainstorming creative presentations, study tips, and creating schedules.
- Employees within SMEs: rewriting emails, shortening quotes, pitching ideas.
- Self-employed: searching for new markets, drafting social media posts, business advice.
- Older users: advice on hobbies, travel planning, helpdesk for digital devices.
- International use: language learning, culture-specific advice, support with document requests in other countries.
Starting as an experiment, ChatGPT has now grown into a digital conversation partner that plays a role in the lives of young and old, rich and poor, at work and at home. The technology is emerging as a coach, source of knowledge, and source of inspiration, a Swiss Army knife for the digital generation. Its power lies not only in the output it produces, but also in the way it helps people think, make decisions, and shape their daily lives.
In Dutch: “Hoe gebruiken mensen ChatGPT“
