Google is in hot pursuit of OpenAI's ChatGPT with its artificial intelligence (AI) model Gemini. After recently adding the image generation and compositing feature "Nano Banana," Gemini climbed to No. 1 among free apps on Apple's App Store, and its global user base surpassed 500 million, proving its growth momentum. Since the start of this month, it has also rolled out diversified pricing, core service integration, and results at international academic competitions, putting pressure on OpenAI's ChatGPT.
According to AI model integration platform company Bearly AI on the 25th, Gemini's global monthly active users (MAU) this month surpassed 500 million. Bearly AI is an integrated AI service in North America that lets users employ multiple artificial intelligence models such as ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini simultaneously within a single app. Earlier, Google set a goal at an internal strategy meeting late last year: "We will reach 500 million Gemini users in 2025." Then in Jul., CEO Sundar Pichai disclosed that it had surpassed 450 million, and in just two months it reached 500 million, achieving the goal ahead of schedule.
In particular, the image editing feature "Nano Banana," introduced last month, ignited Gemini's spread. The feature, which can composite multiple photos or modify elements with text commands, drew 13 million new users right after launch, and the number of images users uploaded reached 500 million. Josh Woodward, a vice president at Google Labs, said, "We had to temporarily impose usage limits due to excessive demand."
Google expanded its AI Plus pricing plan to more than 40 countries. First launched in Indonesia at around 75,000 rupiah per month (about $4.5), it lowered the price barrier further by offering a 50% discount for six months in some countries such as Mexico and Nepal. In parallel with the existing $20 paid subscription, the strategy targets emerging markets and price-sensitive segments. In India, it accelerated its push for younger users by offering college students a paid subscription worth 19,500 rupees per year for free. This pricing strategy—simultaneously promoting a low-cost subscription and free benefits for students—faces off directly against ChatGPT's Go plan, intensifying the two companies' paid subscription rivalry.
The strategy to integrate existing products was also strengthened. On the 18th (local time), Google announced on its official blog that it would fully apply Gemini to the Chrome web browser. Even without subscribing to a separate paid plan, users can use AI features in Chrome such as summarizing web pages, explaining technical terms, and integrating information across tabs. Consolidation with Google services such as Docs, Calendar, and YouTube has also been strengthened, enabling the execution of personalized commands. Chrome holds a market share approaching 70% in the global browser market. By embedding AI in the browser, the first gateway to the internet, analysts say Google is aiming to both reinforce its dominance in search and advance AI training based on user data.
Technical achievements have continued. Google DeepMind's "Gemini 2.5 DeepSeek" solved 10 of 12 problems at the International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC) finals held on the 4th in Baku, Azerbaijan, a gold-medal-level performance. It proved its capabilities on the academic stage again just two months after achieving gold-medal performance at the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) in Jul. In particular, it single-handedly solved a hard problem that no university team managed to crack, demonstrating its reasoning ability for complex optimization problems. The industry sees significance in the possibility that Gemini could be a collaborative partner in solving complex scientific tasks such as drug design and semiconductor development.
These achievements by Gemini are adding pressure on OpenAI. While ChatGPT still holds the lead with roughly 600 million MAU and more than 2.5 billion prompts used per day, Gemini is narrowing the gap at a rapid pace.
Competition across the AI industry is also becoming more multipolar. Microsoft (MS) recently moved to reduce its dependence on OpenAI by loading Anthropic's model into its in-house workplace AI assistant Copilot. Founded by former OpenAI members, Anthropic is growing quickly with its Claude model, and the collaboration could become a variable that shakes up the MS–OpenAI partnership. Perplexity has emerged as a new challenger, ranking No. 1 on Apple's App Store in the Indian market.
An IT industry official said, "Google has a structural advantage in absorbing data through search and the browser, and OpenAI benefits from the MS ecosystem and first-mover advantage, so neither side will be easily pushed aside," adding, "Given Gemini's growth momentum, the global market is hardening into a two-strong structure centered on Google and OpenAI."