Google’s Gemini app has crossed 1 billion monthly active users, CEO Sundar Pichai announced on August 11, calling it “the fastest-growing product” in the company’s 28-year history. It is the 14th Google product to reach the billion-user mark, following Search, Gmail, Android, Maps, Chrome, Play and YouTube.
A steep growth curve
Google’s own numbers show how quickly usage has accelerated. Gemini had 400 million monthly users at Google I/O in May 2025, reached 900 million by I/O 2026, and stood at roughly 950 million when Alphabet reported second-quarter earnings on July 22. Crossing the billion mark took less than three weeks from that report.
According to Google, the growth is increasingly driven by voice and camera features rather than typed prompts. Sixty-three percent of active users now interact with the assistant by voice, and about one in five sessions in Gemini Live use a live camera feed or shared screen instead of text. The company also said the app generates more than 150 million images a day and has passed 100 million monthly active users on iOS alone.
Closing the gap with ChatGPT
The milestone puts Gemini roughly level with ChatGPT, which OpenAI said passed 1 billion monthly users in June. Google has distribution advantages OpenAI doesn’t: Gemini is built directly into Search, Gmail, Android and Chrome, and the company says its separate AI Mode in Search has its own 1 billion monthly users, uncounted in the app figure.
Pichai’s announcement did not include a subscriber count or revenue figure, leaving unclear how much of the billion-user base pays for Gemini versus using it free inside Google’s existing apps. For background on what the assistant does and how it differs from rivals, see our explainer on what Google Gemini is.