ChatGPT increases users, Google slightly decreases

The Internet search market is witnessing an interesting shift, as ChatGPT is gradually becoming a formidable “emerging competitor” to the giant Google. According to a report from Evercore last week, the percentage of users using ChatGPT to search for information has increased from 1% in June to 5% this month. Who is behind this trend? The Millennials (those born between 1981-1996), who “have in their hands” modern digital habits.

While Google still commands 78% of the market, down slightly from 80% in June, the shift is shaking up its advertising business model, which is its moneymaker. It may not sound like much, but controlling how users discover information online is key in the tech game.

Microsoft Bing, which has a modest 4% market share, still consistently rakes in billions of dollars a year. But look at ChatGPT’s progress—a breakthrough that shows how the power of generative AI is slowly eroding Google’s dominance. Since OpenAI upgraded ChatGPT with full search functionality in late October and partnered with Apple, the tech landscape has gotten a few more vibrant hues.

Evercore’s survey found that when searching for products and prices, ChatGPT outperformed Google by 4 percentage points. Of course, Google didn’t sit still: it launched Gemini, its super-smart AI assistant, along with AI Overviews, a promising search results summary tool. And the good news is that 71% of users rated the new experience highly.

So where does the money go? While general information queries skew toward ChatGPT, Google still “protects” its commercial territory and huge advertising revenue. Analyst Mark Mahaney notes that even a 1% share of the search market could generate $2 billion in revenue per year—but only if the platform is as efficient at monetizing as Google, which ChatGPT and similar platforms have yet to achieve.

How exciting will the “search wars” continue to be? Only time will tell, but it is clear that the technology playground is becoming more and more exciting and full of surprises.