ChatGPT Losing Momentum: A Setback for OpenAI's IPO?

ChatGPT Faces Worrying Slowdown

ChatGPT, OpenAI's flagship application, is experiencing a notable slowdown in its growth. According to data provided by Sensor Tower, a market intelligence firm, the app's uninstallation rate saw a dramatic increase of 132% in April compared to the previous year. Even more alarming, this rate surged by 413% last month, a trend that coincides with the agreement signed by OpenAI with the Pentagon in February.

Declining User Growth

Despite still having a significant user base, ChatGPT's growth shows signs of slowing down. In January, the number of monthly active users had increased by 168%, but this rise had dropped to just 78% by April. While ChatGPT maintains a user base considerably larger than that of its competitors, its growth is now being outpaced by Claude, another chatbot that saw its downloads increase 11 times more than those of ChatGPT during the same period. However, it is important to note that ChatGPT's downloads still grew by 14% year-over-year in recent months, according to Sensor Tower.

Stakes for OpenAI's IPO

This context of slowdown comes at a critical time for OpenAI, which is considering an initial public offering (IPO). Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar has expressed concerns regarding this IPO, particularly due to unmet internal goals related to new users and revenue. According to the Wall Street Journal, these disappointing results are raising concerns among OpenAI's leaders about the company's ability to fund future computing contracts if revenues do not progress quickly enough.