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ChatGPT Hits 900 Million Weekly Users as Paid Subscribers Top 50 Million

OpenAI reports its fastest start-of-year subscriber gains, signaling rising consumer willingness to pay for AI assistants.

Overview

  • The company says weekly usage has climbed roughly 350% in 18 months, up from just over 200 million weekly users.
  • More than 5% of weekly users are paying customers, with January and February 2026 on track for record new sign-ups.
  • OpenAI frames the surge as improving the service with faster responses, greater reliability, and stronger safety.
  • ChatGPT has been integrated with Siri since 2024, while 9to5Mac reports Apple plans deeper Gemini-powered features as soon as iOS 26.5.
  • India remains a key market, with 100 million weekly users previously cited by CEO Sam Altman.