"Will I Really Be Left Out If I Don't Use It?"... The App Used by 23 Million Koreans Monthly, Is Naver Feeling the Pressure?

Wiseapp·Retail Survey Shows

ChatGPT's Average Monthly Users Reach 23.24 Million

Up by 9.86 Million Compared to the Same Period Last Year

As the number of users of ChatGPT rapidly increases, it has been analyzed that the app has risen to the ranks of a national application.

ChatGPT App Image. EPA. Photo by EPA

According to WiseApp·Retail on July 15, a survey of Korean smartphone users (Android and iOS) in the first half of this year showed that the average monthly users of ChatGPT reached 23.24 million, up by 9.86 million compared to the same period last year, making it the fastest-growing mobile app among all apps tracked.

It was followed by Setlog with 7.33 million users, Gemini with 6.81 million, Digital Onnuri with 3.63 million, Naver Plus Store with 3.59 million, Google with 3.47 million, Block Blast with 2.75 million, Kakao Pay with 2.49 million, Spotify with 2.22 million, Monimo with 1.94 million, TikTok with 1.91 million, TikTok Lite with 1.85 million, Coupang Eats with 1.81 million, Chrome with 1.55 million, and Daiso Mall with 1.51 million.

In addition, Google was found to have 46.95 million users as of the first half of this year, indicating that nearly all smartphone users remain under Google’s influence. This was followed by Chrome with 43.03 million, ChatGPT with 23.24 million, Coupang Eats with 12.84 million, Kakao Pay with 11.05 million, TikTok with 9.49 million, Naver Plus Store with 8.07 million, Gemini with 7.79 million, Monimo with 7.51 million, Setlog with 7.33 million, TikTok Lite with 6.29 million, Spotify with 5.59 million, Digital Onnuri with 5.54 million, Block Blast with 5.41 million, and Daiso Mall with 5.28 million, in that order.

The impact of generative AI is also pronounced in the search market, with a recent OpenSurvey showing that 52.2% of respondents said they had used Gemini for search services within the past three months. This represents a significant increase of 23.3 percentage points from 28.9% in December of last year; during the same period, ChatGPT usage also rose from 54.5% to 58.1%, an increase of 3.6 percentage points.

However, Naver is still found to maintain its dominant status when it comes to searching for everyday and highly relevant information. The percentage of respondents who said they first use Naver for news or trending topics was tallied at 60.5%. For searches related to local information or shopping, 67.1% indicated they turn to Naver first. In contrast, only 3.5% and 8.4% said they use generative AI services for these purposes, respectively.

From a practical perspective, the analysis suggests that Naver’s content and services ecosystem remains overwhelmingly competitive. In response to the rising profile of generative AI services, Naver officially launched an interactive search feature, the AI Tab, last month. This feature not only answers questions but also predicts user actions, enabling seamless tasks such as making reservations or purchasing products.

An information technology industry insider commented, “Just as messengers like KakaoTalk changed daily life in the early days of smartphone adoption, AI is now becoming a default app. The search market, which was previously centered on portal sites, is now likely to be reorganized around AI platforms.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.