As the competition for generative artificial intelligence (AI) heats up, the number of users of OpenAI's "ChatGPT" is rapidly increasing in South Korea. Last month, following the visit of Sam Altman, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of OpenAI, the monthly active users (MAU) of ChatGPT increased by 700,000 in just one month. Some analysts suggest that ChatGPT benefited from the restrictions placed on DeepSeek in South Korea.
According to the mobile statistics analysis platform Mobile Index, as of last month, the monthly active users (MAU) of the ChatGPT app in South Korea reached 3,869,088, an increase of more than 720,000 compared to the previous month (3,142,29). This marks the largest monthly increase since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022. When compared to the same period last year (697,830), the increase is more than 3 million. This figure is based only on mobile app usage, and the actual number of users is estimated to be higher when including PC users.
The increase in ChatGPT users last month is largely attributed to the marketing effect resulting from OpenAI's aggressive actions. On the 4th, Altman, the CEO, attracted attention during his visit to South Korea after a year. Even with a tight schedule, Altman met with key figures in the country to discuss cooperation. He discussed extensive collaboration to expand the AI ecosystem with Chey Tae-won, the chairman of SK Group, and Lee Jae-yong, the chairman of Samsung Electronics. He also announced a strategic partnership with Kakao to pursue technological collaboration for enhancing AI services and developing joint products.
ChatGPT also enjoyed a ripple effect due to the blocking of DeepSeek's domestic services. The Personal Information Protection Commission confirmed issues, including the transfer of DeepSeek user information to ByteDance, the operator of China's TikTok, and blocked app downloads through Google Play and the App Store in the country on the 15th of last month. With the blocking of DeepSeek becoming a hot topic, even those who had not previously used AI chatbots showed increased interest, leading to interpretations that ChatGPT experienced windfall profits.
AI chatbots are becoming essential tools for problem-solving and productivity improvement, moving beyond mere auxiliary functions. Contrary to the rise of ChatGPT, the number of users of domestic AI services is declining. In the case of SK Telecom's AI chatbot "A-dot," the MAU last month was 1,552,558, a decrease of about 1.25 million from October of last year (2,804,381). The MAU of "Luten," operated by the startup Luten Technologies, was 851,792 last month, down from 914,105 the previous month.
Industry experts anticipate that the version 5.0 of GPT, expected to be released by OpenAI this year, will offer enhanced performance and new features compared to version 4.0, thereby expanding its user base. Apple plans to launch its AI service, "Apple Intelligence," in the upcoming iOS 18.4 version scheduled for release in April, which will include ChatGPT. iPhone users will be able to use ChatGPT services without a separate subscription.
Chey Byung-ho, a professor at Korea University's AI Research Institute, noted, "For the number of users of AI chatbots to increase, there needs to be special events, and in the case of ChatGPT, there have been many such events," adding, "In the case of generative AI, unless specific usage purposes are set for some papers or specialized fields, it is challenging to attract traffic."