Ranjan Roy: OpenAI’s billion-user goal remains unmet, consumer sentiment towards AI is extremely negative, and crypto app growth is slowing in a saturated market | Big Technology

OpenAI's struggle to hit a billion users highlights challenges in consumer AI adoption and growth strategies.

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Add us on Google by Editorial Team May. 1, 2026

Key Takeaways

• OpenAI’s ambitious goal to reach a billion ChatGPT users by 2025 remains unmet, indicating challenges in scaling consumer growth.
• A strategic pivot towards enterprise solutions might be necessary for OpenAI to maintain its competitive edge.
• Consumer sentiment towards AI is notably negative, which could be impacting the growth of AI applications.
• Daily active user growth for AI apps has stagnated, with a decline noted in recent months.
• The user growth for crypto apps is slowing, suggesting market saturation in the US.
• Consumer applications of powerful technologies like GPT haven’t achieved the breakout success seen in enterprise applications.
• Real consumer AI applications are integrating AI into existing platforms like Instagram and Spotify, rather than focusing solely on chatbots.
• Amazon is embedding its AI advertising ecosystem within Rufus, enhancing consumer engagement.
• Generative AI hasn’t yet translated into successful consumer applications as initially expected.
• Certain consumer product categories are not seeing the anticipated success with generative AI applications.
• The integration of AI into e-commerce and advertising is a strategic move to enhance consumer interaction.
• The current landscape of generative AI applications shows a disconnect between technological potential and consumer adoption.

Guest intro

Ranjan Roy is the founder of Margins, a newsletter analyzing the business of technology. He previously worked in product roles at Google and Twitter. He joins the Big Technology Podcast for weekly discussions on the latest tech news, including AI growth and industry battles.

OpenAI’s growth challenges

• OpenAI’s target of a billion ChatGPT users by 2025 has not been met, highlighting potential growth challenges.

• OpenAI had a goal to hit a billion ChatGPT users by the end of the year in 2025; it missed it, it’s still not even announced that number.

  — Ranjan Roy

• The unmet user growth target reflects strategic and market challenges in the generative AI sector.
• A shift towards enterprise solutions may be necessary for OpenAI to focus its strategic direction.

• I think like the new focus mantra, the new pivot to enterprise… they have to have some kind of general focus and decision and strategic direction.

  — Ranjan Roy

• The competitive landscape requires a clear distinction between consumer and enterprise market strategies.
• OpenAI’s challenges in meeting user targets indicate a need for reevaluating its growth strategy.
• Understanding user growth targets is crucial for assessing OpenAI’s position in the generative AI market.

Consumer sentiment and AI adoption

• Consumer sentiment towards AI is extremely negative, affecting user growth and adoption.

• ChatGPT should have been at a billion [users]; it’s not. Consumer sentiment or sentiment overall about AI is extremely negative.

  — Ranjan Roy

• Negative consumer sentiment presents a significant challenge for AI technologies in gaining widespread acceptance.
• The disconnect between consumer expectations and AI adoption is evident in the current market landscape.
• Daily active user growth for AI apps has flatlined, with declines noted in recent months.

• Daily active user growth across all AI apps… chatgpt growth is not just tailing off, it’s down… it’s been down I think from according to Apptopia four of the past five months.

  — Ranjan Roy

• Understanding consumer attitudes is critical for developing strategies to improve AI adoption.
• The stagnation in user growth highlights the need for addressing consumer concerns and perceptions.

Market saturation in crypto apps

• User growth in crypto apps is slowing, indicating potential market saturation in the US.

• I do believe that there is like everyone who is interested has downloaded hachipt a gemini claude whatever else has started to use it… in the US it’s probably reached relative saturation.

  — Ranjan Roy

• Market saturation suggests that the current user base for crypto apps has reached its peak.
• The slowing growth trend is significant for understanding the future trajectory of crypto applications.
• Identifying new user segments is crucial for sustaining growth in a saturated market.
• The saturation of crypto apps in the US reflects broader trends in digital asset adoption.
• Understanding the dynamics of market saturation can inform strategic decisions for crypto app developers.
• The current state of user adoption in crypto apps highlights the challenges of expanding beyond existing user bases.

Enterprise vs. consumer applications of AI

• Consumer applications of powerful technologies like GPT haven’t achieved the breakout success seen in enterprise applications.

• You would think that with a technology this powerful there would be a breakout of consumer apps… consumer it hasn’t happened that way.

  — Ranjan Roy

• The disparity between enterprise and consumer success highlights differing adoption dynamics.
• Enterprise applications of AI are seeing more success compared to consumer-focused solutions.
• Understanding the differences in adoption is crucial for developing effective AI strategies.
• The lack of breakout consumer applications suggests a need for reevaluating AI deployment strategies.
• The success of enterprise applications could inform future consumer-focused AI developments.
• The current landscape indicates a need for innovation in consumer AI applications to match enterprise success.

Integration of AI in existing platforms

• Real consumer AI applications are integrating AI into existing platforms like Instagram and Spotify.

• I think the big kinda like disconnect here is everyone is thinking consumer generative ai or consumer ai overall is are people downloading and asking questions to a chatbot meanwhile every existing consumer experience… is happening everywhere.

  — Ranjan Roy

• AI integration in existing platforms offers a more seamless user experience compared to standalone chatbots.
• The focus on integration highlights a shift in how AI is being utilized in consumer technology.
• Existing platforms incorporating AI can enhance user engagement and satisfaction.
• The integration approach reflects a broader trend in consumer technology towards enhancing existing experiences.
• Understanding the role of AI in existing platforms is crucial for developing effective consumer applications.
• The integration of AI into platforms like Instagram and Spotify demonstrates the potential for enhancing consumer experiences.

Amazon’s AI advertising strategy

• Amazon is embedding its AI advertising ecosystem within Rufus, enhancing consumer engagement.

• They’re actually injecting their entire amazon ads business directly within rufus as well… so I think there’s so many pockets… consumers are engaging with ai more than ever.

  — Ranjan Roy

• The integration of AI in advertising represents a strategic move to leverage technology for consumer interaction.
• Amazon’s strategy highlights the potential for AI to enhance advertising effectiveness.
• The use of AI in advertising can improve targeting and personalization for consumers.
• Understanding Amazon’s approach offers insights into the future of AI in e-commerce and advertising.
• The integration of AI in advertising reflects broader trends in leveraging technology for business growth.
• Amazon’s strategy demonstrates the potential for AI to transform consumer engagement in advertising.

Generative AI’s consumer application challenges

• Generative AI hasn’t yet translated into successful consumer applications as initially expected.

• What I’m talking about specifically is how does generative ai translate into real consumer experiences… there’s no like ai character or ai friend app that’s taking off.

  — Ranjan Roy

• The lack of successful consumer applications indicates challenges in translating AI potential into real-world experiences.
• Understanding the barriers to successful consumer applications is crucial for future AI developments.
• The current landscape suggests a need for innovation in generative AI consumer applications.
• The challenges faced by generative AI highlight the importance of aligning technology with consumer needs.
• The disconnect between generative AI potential and consumer success reflects broader industry challenges.
• Addressing these challenges is critical for realizing the full potential of generative AI in consumer markets.

Limitations in generative AI applications

• Certain consumer product categories are not seeing the anticipated success with generative AI applications.

• There are definitely you know categories of consumer products that just do not have a consumer a generative ai application taking off in a way that you thought it would.

  — Ranjan Roy

• The limitations in generative AI applications highlight the need for targeted innovation.
• Understanding the specific categories struggling with AI applications can inform future development strategies.
• The lack of success in certain categories suggests a need for reevaluating AI deployment approaches.
• Identifying the factors limiting generative AI success is crucial for overcoming industry challenges.
• The current limitations reflect broader trends in the adoption and application of AI technologies.
• Addressing these limitations is essential for realizing the potential of generative AI across diverse consumer categories.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.