ChatGPT hits 700M users; GPT-5 with reasoning superpowers launching

OpenAI’s ChatGPT is set to reach an unprecedented 700 million weekly active users this week, the company announced Monday, August 4, 2025. This milestone solidifies its position as one of the fastest-adopted software products in history, arriving as OpenAI prepares for the anticipated launch of its most powerful language model to date, GPT-5.

This surge represents a 40% increase from the 500 million weekly users ChatGPT had at the end of March and marks a fourfold rise compared to the same period last year. Such explosive growth mirrors the rapid adoption rates seen with platforms like Zoom during the pandemic and early social media networks, highlighting the swift transition of AI tools from experimental novelties to essential utilities.

“Every day, people and teams are learning, creating, and solving harder problems,” stated Nick Turley, OpenAI’s Vice President of Product for ChatGPT, in his announcement of the user benchmark. He also hinted at a “big week ahead,” underscoring the company’s momentum.

The timing of this user growth is strategic, aligning with reports that OpenAI plans to launch GPT-5 in early August, according to sources familiar with the company’s intentions. This suggests a coordinated effort by OpenAI to reinforce its dominance in the AI landscape ahead of intensifying competition.

GPT-5 is expected to be more than just an incremental upgrade. As reported by The Information, which briefed individuals familiar with the project, the new model will integrate OpenAI’s advanced reasoning capabilities, previously found in its separate “o3” series, directly into the flagship GPT platform. This integration aims to create a more powerful and unified system, addressing potential user confusion about which model to utilize for specific tasks. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman described this as “a system that integrates a lot of our technology.”

This consolidation marks a significant strategic shift for OpenAI, which has historically released its reasoning models separately from its general-purpose language models. Furthermore, this move contributes to OpenAI’s broader ambition of achieving artificial general intelligence (AGI). The attainment of AGI would trigger a crucial clause in its partnership with Microsoft, potentially requiring Microsoft to relinquish its rights to OpenAI’s revenue and future models, thereby reshaping one of the technology sector’s most significant collaborations. However, Altman has tempered expectations, indicating that GPT-5 will not achieve a “gold level of capability for many months” post-launch, suggesting the AGI threshold remains a more distant goal.

The remarkable user growth is paralleled by ChatGPT’s expanding role in the business sector. OpenAI now serves 5 million paying business customers, an increase from 3 million in June, as enterprises increasingly integrate AI tools into their core operations. Daily user messages have surpassed 3 billion, reflecting not only a growing user base but also intensifying engagement with the platform.

This surge in business adoption has propelled OpenAI’s annual recurring revenue to $13 billion, up from $10 billion in June, with projections suggesting it could exceed $20 billion by year-end. This robust revenue growth, combined with a recent $8.3 billion funding round that valued OpenAI at $300 billion, provides a solid financial foundation for the substantial infrastructure investments required to maintain its technological edge. These investments include a $30 billion annual lease with Oracle for data center capacity, an $11.9 billion deal with cloud provider CoreWeave, and plans for international expansion through partnerships like Stargate Norway and a major data center project in Abu Dhabi.

OpenAI’s rapid expansion unfolds amidst mounting pressure from well-funded rivals vying for market share. Google’s AI search product, AI Overviews, claims 2 billion monthly users across more than 200 countries, while its Gemini App reports 450 million monthly active users. Anthropic, backed by significant investments from Amazon and others, is reportedly seeking to raise up to $5 billion at a $170 billion valuation, according to Bloomberg. Meta has made significant strides with its Llama models, and Elon Musk’s xAI continues to attract attention and investment. This competitive landscape has intensified the AI arms race, with companies pouring billions into compute infrastructure and talent acquisition. The competition has also triggered a talent war among tech giants, with Microsoft reportedly hiring over 20 employees from Google’s DeepMind team in recent months, including former Gemini engineering head Amar Subramanya, as companies actively recruit from each other’s AI talent pools.

As OpenAI pursues advancements in raw AI capability, the company has also emphasized optimizing ChatGPT for user well-being and productivity. The company recently outlined efforts to help users “thrive in the ways you choose—not to hold your attention, but to help you use it well.” New features include break reminders and improved support for challenging situations, reflecting a growing awareness of AI’s psychological and social impacts. This focus on responsible deployment could prove crucial as regulatory scrutiny intensifies and public debate about AI’s societal effects continues. When GPT-5 launches, it will include multiple variants, such as “mini” and “nano” versions available through OpenAI’s API, providing developers and enterprises with options tailored to diverse use cases and computational requirements.

The convergence of ChatGPT’s immense user growth and the impending launch of GPT-5 marks a pivotal moment for the AI industry. OpenAI’s ability to maintain its leading position while competitors rapidly advance will likely shape the sector’s trajectory for years to come. The company’s success has already reshaped how businesses approach AI integration, transitioning the technology from experimental projects to core operational tools. The 700 million user figure signals that this transformation is accelerating, with implications extending far beyond technology into education, creative industries, and various forms of knowledge work. For enterprise customers, this user growth provides confidence in ChatGPT’s stability and longevity—crucial factors for organizations making long-term AI investments. The platform’s scale also fosters network effects, as widespread adoption drives improvements in model training and capability development. OpenAI now faces a defining test: whether it can convert unprecedented user growth into sustained market dominance in a field where yesterday’s breakthrough quickly becomes tomorrow’s baseline.