OpenAI is growing at an extraordinary pace, even as competition in the AI space heats up. The company has reached 400 million weekly active users, a 33% jump since December, according to Chief Operating Officer Brad Lightcap. This rapid adoption reflects how integral ChatGPT has become for both personal and professional use, with millions discovering new ways to integrate AI into their workflows.
It has been since OpenAI opened up SearchGPT to the public, that webmasters began noticing ChatGPT referrals in their logs. With 400million weekly users, SEO’s are going to perk up to the possibility of legit traffic from ChatGPT.
Lightcap attributes the growth to natural adoption, as more people hear about ChatGPT through word of mouth and begin to see its value firsthand. “People hear about it through word of mouth. They see the utility of it. They see their friends using it,” he explained. As users find meaningful ways to incorporate the tool into their daily lives, adoption continues to climb.
That momentum is carrying over to OpenAI’s enterprise business. The company now boasts 2 million paying enterprise customers, doubling its count since September. Many companies first encounter ChatGPT through employees using it personally, then realize its potential at scale. Firms like Uber, Morgan Stanley, and T-Mobile are leveraging OpenAI’s technology to improve operations, while developer traffic has also surged, with usage of the company’s reasoning model, o3, quintupling in the past six months.
Despite new competition from DeepSeek, a Chinese AI company that shook investor confidence in January, OpenAI remains focused on its roadmap. The company also accused DeepSeek of improper model distillation, though Lightcap noted that these developments have not impacted OpenAI’s open-source approach or investment strategy. “DeepSeek is a testament to how much AI has entered the public consciousness—it would have been unfathomable two years ago,” he said, underscoring how much interest and competition have intensified.
Beyond market competition, OpenAI is also navigating legal disputes, including a lawsuit from co-founder Elon Musk over its transition to a for-profit model. Meanwhile, SoftBank is reportedly finalizing a $40 billion investment, potentially valuing OpenAI at $300 billion. Musk and his investors attempted to buy OpenAI’s nonprofit assets for $97.4 billion, but OpenAI’s board dismissed the offer, with Chairman Bret Taylor making it clear: “The company is not for sale.” Amid all the noise, OpenAI continues to push forward, proving that its influence in AI is only growing.
As the CEO and founder of Pubcon Inc., Brett Tabke has been instrumental in shaping the landscape of online marketing and search engine optimization. His journey in the computer industry has spanned over three decades and has made him a pioneering force behind digital evolution. Full Bio
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