ChatGPT leads AI tools in 2026

The 7th edition of the Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) report on the 100 most used AI tools in the fall of 2026 confirms that ChatGPT remains the most used generative AI tool on both web and mobile platforms. According to the report, ChatGPT recorded about twice as many web visits as Google's Gemini and six times more than Anthropic's Claude in August 2026.

Mobile dominance and shifting rankings

The gap between ChatGPT and its competitors widens on mobile, where OpenAI's tool has 2.5 times more monthly active users than Gemini and 14 times more than Claude. However, Anthropic's Claude climbed from 6th to 3rd place on the web, overtaking DeepSeek and Perplexity.

Market consolidation and new entries

The report highlights a market consolidation trend, with only 11 new products making their debut in the ranking, the lowest number since the ranking was launched in 2023. a16z adds a new reading focused on consumer spending, measured only in the United States, excluding services mainly intended for NSFW (Not safe for work) uses.

Subscription trends and user conversions

According to YipitData on an American panel, 3.02% of panel members paid for a ChatGPT subscription in August, 1.09% for Gemini, and 1.07% for Claude. Claude had surpassed Gemini in March, before Google passed ahead thanks to the integration of 2 To storage subscribers into the AI Plus formula. Claude also converts more to its premium offers, with 7.3% of its subscribers on Max, priced from $100 per month, compared to 1.3% at Google for the Ultra offer.

User activity and spending patterns

YipitData notes a decrease in the average daily sessions of Claude on desktop, as well as fewer new subscribers and more cancellations in the United States. ChatGPT, on the other hand, has accelerated again after the launch of new models and the arrival of ChatGPT Work. Only 8% of American ChatGPT subscribers also pay for Claude.

Spending distribution and pricing

According to the American YipitData panels, only 4.5% of the consumers followed had a paid personal subscription to ChatGPT, Gemini, or Claude in August, compared to 2.1% a year earlier. The top 1% of largest payers account for 20% of the observed spending, more than half of the payers who spend the least (17%). This first centile spends an average of $903 per month, an amount up 80% in 18 months, while the median payer sticks to $25, an amount almost stable.

Monetization models and advertising

Out of the 44 natively AI products in the web ranking, 84% offer a paid subscription and 64% charge by usage or sell additional credits. Only 14% display advertising and 2% deduct a commission on transactions. The fund sees this as "a reversal of the pre-AI mass Internet, where consumers were the product instead of paying for the product."

Revenue and expansion of advertising

OpenAI claims, for the month of August, $1 billion in annualized advertising revenue from ChatGPT, which has 1.2 billion active users each week. Since then, the advertising network of the assistant has opened in France. Established software that have integrated generative AI have found their place in the ranking: Canva (4th) and Notion (7th) remain in the top 10 web.

Startups and European presence

Startups born with AI that hold on rely on a homegrown model, such as Suno (19th in web traffic, 7th in spending) or ElevenLabs (25th and 10th). A distinct sound or visual style "can count more, for a given creative task, than knowing which laboratory has the best general model," observes a16z. Others are betting on access to multiple models, such as Cursor (from 41st to 35th place). In total, only seven companies appear in the three rankings.

AI agents gain traction

In March, a16z estimated that agents like OpenClaw were not yet usable by the general public. Six months later, several startups, including Instinct, Lindy, and Town, claim hundreds of thousands of users. On their part, the giants have replicated with their own agents, Muse at Meta, Dots at OpenAI, and Grok Bot at SpaceXAI.

User growth and monetization strategies

Launched in August on iMessage, Instinct would have surpassed 100,000 users in three weeks, by invitation. Its founder, Noah Shinn, states that 40% of users connect a credit card within the first three weeks and that those who move to purchase spend an average of $1,300 per month through the agent. Muse, on the other hand, would have reached 250,000 daily active users in its first week and exceeded 5 million downloads in less than a month.

Regional presence and future plans

For now, Muse is only available in these two countries. "Like any new mass product, the main battle is against apathy," tempers a16z, taking Threads as an example, which had accumulated more than 15 million downloads in 22 days in the United States and Canada. Instinct and Muse are considering eventually collecting a commission on purchases.

Data sources and methodology

The top 100 is compiled by Andreessen Horowitz, an investment fund active in mass AI. The web and mobile rankings are based on monthly unique visits measured by Similarweb and on monthly active users measured by Sensor Tower, in August 2026. Subscription and spending data come from YipitData panels and only cover the United States.