OpenAI's ChatGPT is facing intense competition from rivals even though it still continues to dominate the AI assistant space, according to Sensor Tower's State of AI 2026 report.
The report stated ChatGPT became the fastest mobile application to reach one billion monthly active users in May 2026, achieving the milestone in just three years. But, the share of unique AI assistant users of the company dropped below 50% for the first time in March 2026. This indicated users' gradual shift to other AI assistance, making the market more competitive.
One of OpenAI's major competitors, Gemini, has strengthened its presence through Google's Android integration, while the other competitor, Claude, has emerged as one of the fastest-growing challengers across key global markets.
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AI Shopping And Commerce Gain Momentum
As per the report, online shopping decisions of users are also highly influenced by AI assistance these days, especially in categories such as consumer electronics, fashion, and home goods. It has been witnessed that GenAI referral traffic has increased incredibly to online shopping websites.
AI assistants are now integrated with retailer platforms; however, the adoption is not even. Retailers such as Walmart and Target have integrated AI assistants and saw a 1.5% plus rise in their GenAI referrals, but in the case of Amazon, the same didn't happen as the company follows a more closed ecosystem approach and limited crawler access.
According to Sensor Tower, shoppers using AI-powered assistants such as Amazon's Rufus are converting at nearly twice the rate of users who do not use these tools, indicating AI is improving both product discovery and purchase decisions.
AI Emerges As A New Advertising Channel
This AI assistances around not only changing the shopping habits of users but also emerging as a new advertising platform. Apart from search and social platforms, ChatGPT has become, along with other AI assistance, a playground for advertisements.
In early 2026, ChatGPT started testing ads on the platforms, and by May 2026, impressions grew by 7 times. Having said that, the penetration level is still low.
“Across the broader internet, AI-related messaging is also becoming mainstream. More than 200,000 apps now mention AI in their descriptions, and ad creatives mentioning generated over $1.3 billion in spend globally in Q1 2026,” as stated in the report.
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