ChatGPT logo. AP/Yonhap News 

OpenAI's artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot, ChatGPT, has surpassed $3 billion (approximately 4.4 trillion won) in cumulative consumer payments in the mobile app market, just 31 months after its launch.

Mobile market analytics firm Appfigures reported that consumers using ChatGPT on Apple's iOS and Android devices paid $2.48 billion this year, according to IT news outlet TechCrunch on the 18th (local time).

This figure is approximately a fivefold increase compared to last year's payment amount of $487 million, and a roughly 58-fold increase when compared to the $42.9 million paid from January to December 2023.

Consequently, the cumulative payments have exceeded $3 billion since the OpenAI app's initial launch in May 2023.

TechCrunch noted that the fact that most consumer payments were concentrated this year indicates a rapid increase in consumer adoption of ChatGPT recently.

OpenAI also reached the $3 billion cumulative payment milestone faster than major subscription-based video apps.

Disney+ took 42 months, while HBO Max and TikTok required 46 and 58 months, respectively.

However, this aggregated figure only includes payments made through mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, and does not incorporate direct payments made through the website.

Furthermore, OpenAI also generates revenue from developers and enterprise customers through its API.