Claude Grew 10x Faster Than ChatGPT In April — Is OpenAI Losing AI Power Users?

For much of the AI boom, the narrative seemed straightforward: OpenAI built the breakout consumer product, and everyone else was chasing ChatGPT.

April's web traffic data is suddenly making that story look more complicated.

According to Similarweb, Anthropic‘s Claude.ai posted 34.18% month-over-month traffic growth in April 2026, dramatically outpacing every major generative AI platform. By comparison, OpenAI’s ChatGPT.com traffic actually declined 3.84% during the same period, while Alphabet Inc‘s (NASDAQ:GOOGL) (NASDAQ:GOOG) Gemini rose 6.38%.

The contrast is striking because ChatGPT still dominates mainstream AI awareness. Yet the fastest momentum appears to be shifting toward Anthropic's Claude.

AI's Power Users May Be Rotating

The data may hint at something deeper than ordinary traffic fluctuations.

Claude has increasingly gained traction among developers, researchers, and professional users who prioritize long-context reasoning, coding workflows, and document analysis. In many corners of the AI community, Claude is quietly developing a reputation as the preferred tool for heavier productivity use cases rather than casual chatbot interactions.

That matters because power users often shape broader adoption trends.

Meanwhile, ChatGPT's slight traffic decline comes as the AI market becomes more fragmented. Users are no longer relying on a single chatbot for every task. Instead, many appear to be mixing platforms depending on strengths in coding, reasoning, search, or image generation.

OpenAI's Lead Is Starting To Look Less Absolute

None of this means OpenAI is suddenly losing the AI race.

ChatGPT remains vastly larger than rivals in total reach, ecosystem integration, and brand recognition. But Similarweb's April data suggests the market may be evolving from a winner-take-all landscape into a more competitive ecosystem where specialized AI platforms can carve out meaningful share.

The rise of Claude and China-based DeepSeek also reinforces another emerging reality in AI: investors and users are increasingly searching for the "next platform" before the market fully reprices the broader ecosystem.

That shift could have major implications not just for AI startups, but also for infrastructure companies, cloud providers, and chipmakers tied to the next phase of generative AI growth.

Image via Shutterstock