Consumer AI in 2025: Why Google and Grok Are Narrowing the Gap with ChatGPT
ChatGPT may still lead the market, but a new wave of competitors is challenging the status quo and reshaping how consumers interact with AI
The consumer AI landscape is shifting, and ChatGPT is no longer unchallenged. Andreessen Horowitz’s latest report shows that Google’s Gemini and xAI’s Grok are steadily narrowing the gap with OpenAI’s flagship chatbot.
For over two and a half years, a16z has tracked how people engage with AI tools across web and mobile. Its fifth report reveals that while ChatGPT still leads, rival products are staking serious claims. Google now appears four times on the top generative AI web product list, including Gemini, AI Studio, NotebookLM, and Google Labs. Gemini, the most visible of these, ranks second on mobile behind ChatGPT. Its adoption is heavily Android-driven, with nearly 90% of users on that platform, and it captures roughly 12% of ChatGPT’s web traffic.
Grok, launched on X less than a year ago, has surged quickly. The app now ranks fourth on the web and 23rd on mobile, with monthly active users reaching 20 million. The release of Grok 4 in July 2025 fueled a 40% jump in engagement, signaling growing appetite for AI tools beyond traditional chat interfaces.
Meta AI faces a different story. Its general assistant remains at No. 46 on the web and fails to make the top mobile list. Adoption has been hampered by privacy concerns, including reports that some user content was shared publicly without consent. Meanwhile, other AI tools like Perplexity and Claude continue to grow steadily, while DeepSeek and several Chinese AI platforms have seen dips in engagement.
China’s footprint in consumer AI remains significant. Web-focused products like Quark, Doubao, and Kimi show strong local adoption, while a larger set of Chinese-developed apps, including DeepSeek and SeaArt, have been exported for global audiences. On mobile, 22 of the top 50 apps are Chinese-built, though only a handful are primarily used in China.
Emerging players are also making headway. Replit and Lovable now appear on the main list for the first time, benefiting from platforms that allow web apps to gain traction without custom domains. Meanwhile, other apps, including PixAI, Bolt, Blackbox AI, and Clipchamp, hover near the top, suggesting the market is opening to fresh innovations as stores crack down on ChatGPT clones.
ChatGPT remains the benchmark, but the AI ecosystem is maturing. Consumers now have multiple paths to experiment with generative tools, whether for productivity, creativity, or companionship. Google and Grok are proving that even dominant players can be challenged, and the next wave of AI adoption will likely be shaped as much by accessibility and trust as by technology.
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