Gen AI Consumer Apps: ChatGPT Leads, but Rivals Are Gaining

Andreessen Horowitz has published the sixth edition of its ranking of the top 100 generative AI consumer apps. The headline finding will surprise no one: ChatGPT remains far ahead. The more interesting story is underneath. Competitors spent the past cycle shipping products that are starting to narrow specific gaps, and the fight is moving from raw usage toward ecosystem lock-in.

ChatGPT's scale is still unmatched

By a16z's account, ChatGPT has passed 900 million weekly users and still dwarfs every rival 1. The firm also shows OpenAI holding the lead in consumer subscriptions, the metric that ultimately pays for the enormous compute bills behind these products 2.

Engagement data reinforces the picture. On the web, ChatGPT users log about 1.3 times as many sessions per month as Gemini users. On mobile the gap widens to roughly 2.2 times 2. That mobile figure matters. Phones are where habits form, and where a default assistant is most likely to become reflexive.

The report frames the moment as a race for the "default AI." That framing implies the race is still open, even if one runner is well ahead 2.

Google won with creative tools

The report's explanation for why the field is tightening is blunt: the competitors shipped 2. Google gets particular credit for its creative models. a16z says the Nano Banana image model generated 200 million images and brought 10 million new users to Gemini in its first week 2. It also describes the Veo 3 video model as widely seen as the breakthrough moment for AI video 2.

This points to a useful pattern. Gemini's growth did not come mainly from beating ChatGPT at general chat. It came from a standout capability in a specific category, which then pulled people into the broader assistant. Early data cited by a16z shows Gemini's web sessions per user per month climbing 2. The trend is real, even though the absolute gap remains.

Retention is where the two leaders look most alike. Citing Yipit Data, a16z reports that both ChatGPT and Gemini show best-in-class retention of paid consumer subscribers in the U.S. 2 For Google, that suggests users who pay are not simply experimenting and leaving. For OpenAI, it suggests a lead in subscriptions that rivals will struggle to chip away at quickly.

Anthropic bets on the prosumer

Anthropic is pursuing a different strategy. Rather than competing head-on for the mass market, it has focused on the prosumer. Its recent releases include:

• Cowork, a new prosumer product
• Claude in Chrome, a browser integration
• Excel and PowerPoint plug-ins
• Claude Code, which a16z singles out as its most notable launch 2

The logic is easy to follow. A smaller user base can still be highly valuable if those users pay more, rely on the tool for real work, and embed it in professional routines. Consumer rankings tend to reward breadth. Anthropic appears to be optimizing for depth.

The next battleground is the app store

The most forward-looking argument in the report concerns lock-in. a16z points to the connector ecosystems both OpenAI and Anthropic have built. On the ChatGPT side, that means GPTs and Apps for ChatGPT. On the Claude side, it means MCP integrations and Connectors 2. These let users build workflows on top of the assistant itself 2.

The firm argues that once a user has wired an AI into their calendar, email, and CRM, switching costs rise sharply 2. This is arguably the more durable moat. Model quality leapfrogs every few months, and a better image generator can lure users away for a week. Rebuilding a set of personal integrations elsewhere is tedious enough that most people won't bother.

What it adds up to

The report supports a two-part conclusion. In the near term, ChatGPT's position is secure. It leads on users, subscriptions, and engagement, especially on mobile 12.

Over the longer term, the contest is shifting. Google has shown that a breakout creative feature can drive meaningful user acquisition. Anthropic is building loyalty among power users. Every major player is racing to become the hub that other software connects to.

The practical takeaway is that "most users" and "hardest to leave" are becoming separate competitions. ChatGPT is currently winning both. But the second may decide the market more than the first, and it is far less settled than a 900-million-user headline suggests.