March 16, 2026 — Worldwide A Graphite.io study published around March 8 reports that AI Assistants Make Up 56% of Global Search Volume, equivalent to 45 billion monthly sessions for top large language models including ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Grok and Claude. The analysis, led by CEO Ethan Smith, combines web traffic and mobile app data using Similarweb, showing AI usage is 4-5 times larger than prior web-only estimates.
In the US, AI sessions total 5.4 billion monthly, representing 34% of search volume. ChatGPT dominates with 89% of global AI sessions and 86% in the US. Notably, 83% of worldwide AI usage occurs via mobile apps, compared to 75% in the US.
“We originally sought to evaluate our hypothesis that most claims about the usage of AI were overstated… However, upon closer inspection of the data, we found that not only are the claims that AI may soon overtake search not overstated, they are understated.”
Smith stated in the study.
Methodology and Trends
The study covers data up to Q4 2025, focusing on “asking” prompts that align with search intent, comprising 51.6% of AI usage. It compares top six search engines—Google, Bing, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo, Yandex and Baidu—against the top five LLMs. Total search plus AI usage grew 26% worldwide and 16% in the US from 2024 to 2025, indicating market expansion rather than displacement.
Worldwide AI sessions plateaued since July 2025, while US usage surged 300% year-over-year. ChatGPT captures 20% of global search-related traffic and 12% in the US.
“The growth of AI is incremental to search. The pie is getting much bigger.”
Smith added.
Industry Coverage and Implications
The findings gained rapid attention in marketing outlets. Search Engine Land led coverage on March 8, emphasizing the mobile data gap. Performance Marketing World on March 10 highlighted faster-than-expected AI growth. Other reports from Innermedia and AI Productivity echoed the AI Assistants Make Up 56% of Global Search Volume statistic.
Ignite Visibility referenced the study on March 13 amid discussions on AI’s impact on SEO strategies. Coverage underscores AI Assistants Make Up 56% of Global Search Volume as a signal for digital marketers to adapt to AI surfaces, with traditional engines like Google retaining 71% worldwide share (down from 89% in 2023).
Smith noted no timeline for AI surpassing search but expects it “in the near future” given rapid growth. AI Assistants Make Up 56% of Global Search Volume marks a shift, as prior underestimates ignored app dominance.