Epoch AI launches ChatGPT usage explorer analyzing 5,000 users' data

Source published 5h 14m agoTerminal published 5h 11m ago

Summary

Epoch AI has released a new ChatGPT usage explorer that analyzes the chat histories of 5,000 US users who participated in a YouGov panel, focusing on their interactions from December 2022 to December 2025. This data reveals a significant increase in usage intensity, with the percentage of users engaging with ChatGPT for over 21 days a month quadrupling from 2.6% to 10.5% during this period. The research highlights key trends, including a rise in message volume, where the median number of messages per active panelist grew from 14 in January 2023 to 36 in December 2025. These findings contribute to the understanding of AI user behavior over time, offering valuable insights that complement previous surveys and align with OpenAI's reported growth trends in ChatGPT usage while ensuring user privacy through the redaction of message content.

Analysis

YouGov: YouGov is a market research and public opinion polling firm that operates large-scale respondent panels for surveys and data studies across multiple countries. It randomly selected and supplied anonymized metadata from opted-in US panelists who used ChatGPT in 2026, removing all message text before sharing. This collaboration supports the new usage explorer by providing a longitudinal view of activity without exposing actual conversations. ChatGPT: ChatGPT is an AI-powered conversational interface developed by OpenAI that enables users to interact with large language models via text prompts for tasks such as writing assistance, coding, and information retrieval. The service has expanded significantly since its launch, with user behavior data now being studied to understand evolving interaction patterns. The provided news launches an explorer tool analyzing aggregated metadata from thousands of its US users' chat histories spanning late 2022 through 2025. Research Context: Independent analysis of AI user behavior from actual logs over multiple years remains rarer than self-reported polls or company-provided summaries. Data Collaboration: Epoch AI partnered with YouGov to release aggregate metadata from ChatGPT chat histories while preserving user privacy through redaction of all message text. Complementary Insights: The explorer data aligns closely with OpenAI's own published usage figures in growth trends while offering message-level details from a fixed panel of active users.

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Analysis

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