A new working paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research digs into how people have been using ChatGPT since it launched in late 2022. The researchers tracked activity up to mid-2025 and the results give a fascinating snapshot of how the technology has moved from curiosity to everyday tool.
Adoption at scale
By July 2025, about one in ten adults worldwide had tried ChatGPT. That’s a staggering figure when you think about the speed of adoption. Early on, most users were men, but that gap has closed quickly. Uptake has been particularly strong in lower-income countries, showing that AI tools aren’t just the preserve of wealthier economies.
Work vs life
At first, people leaned towards using ChatGPT for work. Over time, the balance has tipped the other way. Today, more than 70% of conversations are for non-work purposes. That could mean help with personal writing, guidance on everyday problems, or just satisfying curiosity. Work usage hasn’t gone away though, it’s still most common among highly educated professionals in well-paid roles.
What people talk about
Three categories dominate: practical guidance, information seeking, and writing. Together, these account for nearly 80% of all conversations. Writing is especially strong in work-related tasks, highlighting one of ChatGPT’s biggest advantages over traditional search engines. Programming, self-expression and more niche topics are much smaller slices of the pie.
Why it matters
The paper suggests ChatGPT’s real economic value lies in helping people make decisions, generate text and find clarity quickly. For knowledge-intensive jobs, that’s particularly powerful. But there’s also a clear divide – the benefits stack up more for those with higher levels of education and better jobs. Questions of access and fairness aren’t going away.
The takeaway
ChatGPT has gone mainstream. It’s not just a toy or a novelty any more – it’s becoming part of daily routines, both at work and at home. The strongest pull seems to be its ability to act as a writing partner and sounding board. Whether that leads to greater productivity for some or simply more creativity for others, one thing’s clear: people are finding their own uses for it at an extraordinary scale.
Credits:
How People Use ChatGPT
Aaron Chatterji, Thomas Cunningham, David J. Deming, Zoe Hitzig, Christopher Ong, Carl
Yan Shan, and Kevin Wadman
NBER Working Paper No. 34255
September 2025
JEL No. J01, O3, O4
