Google is poised to add Gemini to its list of products with more than a billion users, joining Search, Gmail, Drive, Android, YouTube, and Chrome. During its Q2 2026 earnings call, the company announced that Gemini has surpassed 950 million monthly users, a significant increase from the 750 million monthly active users it reported in February. This growth positions Gemini to more closely compete with OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which reached 1 billion monthly active users in June.
Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai highlighted the popularity of new agentic features like Daily Brief and Gemini Spark, which is now available in the U.S. and internationally. He noted that the company has been rapidly rolling out helpful features. Additionally, the Gemini app has gained a strong user base on iOS, with over 137 million downloads in the last 12 months, according to Appfigures. Sensor Tower’s latest “State of AI” report for H1 2026 also noted that Gemini’s market share rose to 27.7%, marking the first time ChatGPT’s share fell below 50%.
Google emphasized that its search vertical remains robust, partly due to an AI-centric overhaul. During the quarter, its Q&A-style AI mode reached 1 billion users, contributing to an incremental increase in search queries. The company also highlighted hardware engineering efforts that have reduced the cost of AI mode despite introducing new models and features. Google said it is driving an incremental increase in search queries through these advancements.
Source: techcrunch
