Alphabet $GOOGL ( ▼ 2.08% ) just flexed its AI muscles on its earnings call, and Wall Street liked what it saw. The company highlighted that its Gemini app has now surpassed 750 million monthly active users, a stat that helped fuel the narrative that Google has officially graduated from AI underdog to serious contender.
But when it comes to actual usage, OpenAI is still sitting on the throne.
Growth vs. Scale
Gemini is expanding quickly. Monthly usage jumped 19% compared to the prior month, a much faster clip than ChatGPT’s 4% growth. Momentum is clearly on Google’s side, and investors are taking that as proof that its heavy AI spending is starting to pay off.
Still, speed is not the same thing as size.
ChatGPT’s Massive Lead
Despite Gemini’s surge, it remains far behind ChatGPT in total traffic. In January, Gemini recorded just over 2 billion global visits, according to Similarweb data. ChatGPT, by comparison, pulled in a staggering 5.7 billion visits during the same period.
That gap shows OpenAI still has a powerful hold on user habits, even as competition heats up.
The AI Race Is Far From Over
The takeaway is not that Gemini is failing. It is clearly gaining ground, and Google’s broader AI push is translating into real user growth. But ChatGPT remains the default chatbot for a huge portion of the world.
For now, OpenAI leads on scale, Google is winning on acceleration, and the AI chatbot race is turning into a marathon, not a sprint.