ChatGPT Search Gains Significant Traction in EU Market, Reports Over 40 Million Monthly Users

According to recent data disclosed in a mandatory report under the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA), ChatGPT Search has experienced substantial growth in its European user base. The AI-powered search feature reported approximately 41.3 million monthly users through the first quarter ending March 2025, representing a remarkable fourfold increase compared to the period ending October 31, 2024, when it had 11.2 million users.

This rapid expansion demonstrates increasing consumer adoption of AI-enhanced search technologies within the European market. The official figures, which OpenAI is required to publish under EU regulations, provide rare insight into the adoption rates of newer search alternatives in a traditionally Google-dominated landscape.

For context, rival AI search engine Perplexity reported approximately 15 million monthly active users globally throughout 2024, with about 400 million search queries processed monthly as of October 2024. While these numbers signal growing interest in AI-powered search alternatives, they remain dwarfed by established market leader Google.

Google continues to maintain its commanding position in the search market, handling an estimated 8.5 billion search queries daily – a volume that puts the newer AI competitors' metrics in perspective. Despite this vast difference in scale, the significant growth trajectory of ChatGPT Search suggests AI-augmented search is gaining meaningful traction among European internet users.

The substantial user growth at ChatGPT Search occurred during a period when Google has also been actively expanding its own AI search capabilities, indicating a broader shift in the search engine landscape toward more AI-integrated experiences. This competitive dynamic could potentially accelerate innovation in the search space as companies vie for market share in this evolving segment.

While these newer AI search solutions are still far from challenging Google's market dominance, their rapid growth rates suggest users are increasingly willing to experiment with alternative search methodologies that leverage advanced AI capabilities to deliver more contextual, conversational search experiences.