DeepSeek Explodes on the AI Scene, Challenging ChatGPT

Fast-growing AI app and website from China disrupts expectations of US dominance

A lean and mean AI machine from China is exciting open-source AI model advocates and dismaying those who thought American companies like ChatGPT creator OpenAI had a proprietary lock on generative AI tech.

Known as DeepSeek, the app launched on January 10 as DeepSeek – AI Assistant on iOS and Android. On the web, it’s available at chat.deepseek.com. Then on January 20, the Chinese AI researchers behind DeepSeek released an AI model called R1 that appears to rival OpenAI’s most advanced models while using less expensive processors – causing the stock price of advanced AI chip maker Nvidia to drop 17%.

Here is what we see so far in the web traffic and app usage statistics for DeepSeek.

Key takeaways

• On Friday, January 24, the Deepseek website (deepseek.com) attracted 6.2 million daily visits. As recently as December 2024, the website was averaging around 300K daily visits.
• On the same day, the DeepSeek app for Android was already getting 1.64 million daily active users (DAUs). Over the weekend, it reached #1 in the iOS App Store.

Web traffic goes from a slow build to a steep spike

Excitement about DeepSeek began building after the launch of its consumer app on January 10 – before that, excitement about its advances was already building among AI professionals but not a mass market.

In the last few days, DeepSeek traffic has surpassed that of Perplexity (perplexity.ai) and Claude (claude.ai) and is catching up with Google’s Gemini (gemini.google.com).

App engagement: a first look

So far, the Similarweb mobile app data model has gathered only the first few days worth of daily active user (DAUs) estimates, but the trend they show parallels what we’re seeing on the web.

The chart below shows DAUs for Android.

As a ChatGPT rival, it’s just getting started

Many bigger rivals have tried to make a dent in ChatGPT’s market share and mindshare, with limited success, and at this early stage, it’s hard to say how big of a threat DeepSeek might be. On the day that DeepSeek attracted 6.2 million website visits, ChatGPT (chatgpt.com) had 117.5 million visits, or 19 times more. The ChatGPT mobile app gets roughly 50 times more DAUs than the DeepSeek app.

On the other hand, DeepSeek’s debut shows there is still room to challenge ChatGPT’s claim to leadership in AI tech.

The Similarweb Press Office can pull additional or updated data on request for the news media (write to press@similarweb.com). When citing our data, please reference Similarweb as the source and link back to the most relevant blog post or similarweb.com/blog/insights/.

Methodology

Disclaimer: All names, brands, trademarks, and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. The data, reports, and other materials provided or made available by Similarweb consist of or include estimated metrics and digital insights generated by Similarweb using its proprietary algorithms, based on information collected by Similarweb from multiple sources using its advanced data methodologies. Similarweb shall not be responsible for the accuracy of such data, reports, and materials and shall have no liability for any decision by any third party based in whole or in part on such data, reports, and materials.

by David F. Carr

David covers social media, digital advertising, and generative AI. With a background in web trends since the 1990s, he’s also the author of "Social Collaboration for Dummies".