OpenAI’s ChatGPT has emerged as the world’s most downloaded app for seven consecutive months, maintaining its top spot across both the Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store from March through September 2025, according to data from mobile analytics firm Appfigures.

The chatbot, launched just two years ago, has now become a cultural and technological phenomenon, amassing an estimated 410.8 million global downloads so far this year — a figure that dwarfs the performance of other major artificial intelligence apps.

Appfigures data shows Google’s Gemini app trailing with 131.1 million downloads, followed by China’s DeepSeek with 79.2 million, Elon Musk’s Grok with 46.6 million, Perplexity AI with 43.1 million, and Meta AI with 16.9 million downloads.

These figures not only illustrate OpenAI’s unmatched reach but also reflect how ChatGPT has become the default gateway for everyday AI use — from education and business to creative writing and programming assistance.

A Global Phenomenon in User Engagement

ChatGPT’s growth has not been limited to downloads. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman revealed during the company’s DevDay conference on Monday that the platform now boasts 800 million active weekly users — equivalent to more than 10% of the world’s population.

According to a joint paper published by researchers from Harvard, Duke, and OpenAI, ChatGPT processed over 2.5 billion messages per day as of July 2025 — roughly 29,000 messages every second. This staggering level of engagement underscores how generative AI has evolved from a niche curiosity into one of the most heavily used digital tools on Earth.

The researchers noted that the chatbot’s widespread use spans more than 180 countries, with strong adoption not only in advanced economies like the United States, Japan, and the United Kingdom but also across emerging markets in Africa, Latin America, and South Asia — regions where AI-powered mobile tools are increasingly seen as vital for learning and work.

Why ChatGPT Stands Apart

Part of ChatGPT’s success lies in its cross-platform accessibility and continuous upgrades. OpenAI’s rollout of voice, image, video, and memory features has made the app more versatile than rivals that remain largely text-based. Users can now hold full conversations with ChatGPT, upload photos for analysis, or have the assistant remember details from past chats — all of which deepen engagement and make the experience feel more personal.

By contrast, some note competitors like Gemini and Perplexity have struggled to achieve similar levels of stickiness, often catering to narrower audiences or integrating AI features into larger ecosystems rather than offering standalone, humanlike assistants.

OpenAI’s close partnerships with Microsoft — integrating ChatGPT’s underlying GPT-4 model into Copilot and Office 365 tools — have also expanded its enterprise footprint, making the app not just a consumer tool but a productivity platform.

The Broader AI App Race

The dominance of ChatGPT comes amid a fierce global race among AI developers to capture mobile users. Tech giants like Google and Meta have poured billions into their AI divisions, while startups such as Perplexity and Anthropic continue to launch innovative conversational models.

However, ChatGPT’s sustained lead for seven months signals the platform’s early advantage in usability and global recognition. Analysts say OpenAI has managed to create a “network effect” where its widespread use fuels data quality, leading to faster model improvements that keep it ahead of rivals.

Still, some experts warn that the broader AI app surge may face sustainability challenges. As user expectations rise and costs of operating large-scale AI models remain high, the question is whether companies can balance accessibility with profitability.

For now, though, OpenAI’s chatbot remains unmatched. With hundreds of millions of downloads, billions of daily interactions, and a user base larger than most social media platforms, ChatGPT has firmly established itself as the most popular and possibly most influential AI product of the modern era.

Morgan Stanley has taken another major step into the cryptocurrency market, announcing that it will broaden access to crypto investments to all clients and allow such investments across all account types, including retirement accounts.

The expansion, which takes effect on October 15, marks a significant policy shift at the world’s largest wealth management firm and underscores how Wall Street is accelerating its embrace of digital assets under President Donald Trump’s crypto-friendly administration.

Previously, Morgan Stanley only allowed clients with at least $1.5 million in assets and a high-risk tolerance to gain exposure to crypto through taxable brokerage accounts. Now, the firm’s more than 15,000 financial advisors will be able to offer crypto funds to any client, regardless of wealth or risk profile. The decision follows last month’s announcement that the bank will enable trading of bitcoin, ether, and solana through its E-Trade subsidiary.

Morgan Stanley’s move comes as it continues to defend its dominant position in the U.S. wealth management industry, where it oversees $8.2 trillion in client assets across its wealth and investment management operations. The expansion represents the latest sign that traditional finance institutions are moving swiftly to accommodate rising investor demand for digital assets following the Trump administration’s reversal of Washington’s previously cautious stance toward the sector.

To mitigate potential risks from the notoriously volatile crypto market, Morgan Stanley will rely on an automated system to monitor client portfolios and ensure that investors are not overly concentrated in digital assets, according to people familiar with the policy cited by CNBC. The bank’s global investment committee has also established a framework recommending that clients limit their initial crypto exposure to between 1% and 4% of their portfolios, depending on their investment objectives — ranging from wealth preservation to more aggressive growth strategies.

“The committee considers cryptocurrency as a speculative and increasingly popular asset class that many investors, but not all, will seek to explore,” said Lisa Shalett, Chief Investment Officer for Wealth Management at Morgan Stanley, in an October 1 report distributed to clients.

For now, advisors will be restricted to offering bitcoin funds managed by BlackRock and Fidelity, according to internal documents seen by CNBC. However, the firm is reviewing additional options as it monitors the evolving digital asset landscape. Clients who wish to do so can also request exposure to any exchange-traded crypto product listed on regulated markets.

Morgan Stanley’s pivot follows a wider trend among major U.S. banks adjusting their strategies to align with the Trump administration’s pro-crypto regulatory outlook. JPMorgan Chase, which once blocked customers from purchasing crypto on its credit cards, has in recent months expanded access to blockchain-based payment rails and quietly integrated its JPM Coin system into more corporate transactions. CEO Jamie Dimon, who had long expressed skepticism toward bitcoin, has softened his tone publicly, recently acknowledging that blockchain technology could play a “permanent role in the future of finance.”

Goldman Sachs, meanwhile, has revived its digital assets trading desk, expanding its offerings beyond bitcoin futures to include ether and tokenized treasury products. The bank has also reopened discussions about launching a broader crypto custody platform, citing growing institutional demand and regulatory clarity from Washington.

Reuters reported several large U.S. banks, including Bank of America and Citi, are working on or studying stablecoins as regulatory clarity improves. Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan told analysts the bank is “working on launching a stablecoin” and is “still trying to figure out how big or small it is.” Morgan Stanley’s CFO said the bank is “following stablecoin developments closely.”

Citigroup is also reportedly “considering custody and payment services for stablecoins and crypto ETFs,” exploring custody for Treasuries and cash that could back tokenized products. That points to banks looking beyond trading to infrastructure and settlement roles.

Analysts say Morgan Stanley’s latest move underscores how mainstream the crypto market has become, as the combination of Trump’s deregulation efforts and mounting investor interest pushes large financial institutions to adapt. With over $8 trillion in client assets, the firm’s full-scale embrace of crypto is expected to pressure rivals like Bank of America and Citi to revisit their own restrictive policies toward digital assets.