Andriy Onufriyenko/Getty Images Artificial intelligence chatbots are everywhere. Driven by the rise of ChatGPT , Gemini and Claude , the software mimics human conversation. You’ve probably chatted with a customer service bot while shopping online or asked a virtual assistant to set a reminder. They’re embedded in apps, websites and smart devices, helping you complete tasks faster and more efficiently with 24/7 support for everything from online shopping to booking flights.
But they’re not just for practical uses. Some chatbots are designed purely for entertainment or companionship. For instance, Replika creates a virtual friend experience , while chatbots like ChatGPT are often used for creative brainstorming , coding help and casual conversation .
AI chatbots have also found a place in professional environments. Tools like Microsoft’s Copilot integrate with work platforms, streamlining tasks like drafting emails or summarizing long documents . Around 35% of people in the USA have used AI chatbots to answer a question instead of a search engine, according to one survey in 2023, and another 35% have turned to it for explanations . A 2024 study showed a rise, with 56% of US teens and 55% of parents using AI-powered search engines , while half of teens and 38% of parents used chatbots. Another study found that 17% of respondents said chatbot-style results helped them find answers faster.
The growing stats back this up: businesses love them and users see why. ChatGPT is more popular than ever and logged 3.9 billion visits in November 2024, doubling its traffic from the year before. AI chatbots, with a 252% growth rate , is the second fastest-growing category in artificial intelligence, just behind AI image generators , according to some stats.
Perhaps we live in times when we got accustomed to outsourcing our intelligence to these machines a tad too much. Still, they are undeniably simplifying our routines and workflows like never before. Not all chatbots are the same
"Chatbot" is often used as an umbrella term to describe any software capable of simulating a conversation with humans. Early chatbots functioned like basic FAQ systems, offering pre-written answers to simple, expected questions. […]
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