India surge drives ChatGPT to top of global app downloads in March: Report

ChatGPT overtakes Instagram and TikTok to become the world's most downloaded app in March 2025, likely driven by the trend of generating and sharing Ghibli-style images

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US-based artificial intelligence (AI) entity OpenAI’s ChatGPT has reportedly become the world’s most downloaded mobile application in March 2025, surpassing Instagram and TikTok. According to data released by AppFigures, the app recorded an estimated 46 million downloads globally in March, likely fuelled by the trend of creating and sharing Ghibli-style visuals.

 

The report states that ChatGPT recorded approximately 13 million downloads on iPhones from the App Store, and 33 million downloads from the Google Play Store for Android devices.

 

Instagram reportedly matched ChatGPT’s total of 46 million downloads, though with a different split: 5 million downloads on iOS and 41 million on Android. Instagram was closely followed by the Chinese social media platform TikTok, which had nearly 45 million total downloads, with 8 million on iOS and 37 million on Android.

 

OpenAI’s Chief Operating Officer Brad Lightcap also shared a post on X (formerly Twitter), stating that India has become ChatGPT’s fastest-growing market. He added that over 130 million users have used ChatGPT’s Ghibli-style image generation feature, collectively generating more than 700 million images since its launch. This is also speculated to be a major driver behind the increase in ChatGPT mobile app downloads.

In a related development, OpenAI has introduced a major update to ChatGPT’s memory function, enabling its chatbot to recall previous conversations and offer more tailored responses. Currently available to Pro subscribers only, the feature requires users to opt in before activation. The update is part of OpenAI’s broader strategy to make its AI models more user-aware and adaptive.