The Era of Tailored Intelligence: Charting the Growth and Market Impact of Custom GPTs

On November 6th 2023 (Source), OpenAI, the research firm behind the globally recognized ChatGPT, released a capability to create custom GPTs. Then, on January 10, 2024, it launched the GPT Store, a public marketplace for consumers to create and access tailored versions of their LLM (large language model) (Source). According to OpenAI, anyone with ChatGPT plus subscription is able to build their own custom version of ChatGPT without the need to code (Source). 

At Originality.ai, we have already gone into great depth covering both OpenAI as a company (Source) and their latest iteration of the ChatGPT model, GPT-4 (Source). However, for the first time, there now exists a semi-public (restricted to ChatGPT plus members) market for creators to access and alter the ChatGPT model by equipping it with specific instructions or knowledge aimed to improve performance on specialized tasks. Not only does the open sourcing of the ChatGPT model spell for momentous advancements in the technology used by AI applications, furthering the understanding and utility of them. It also boosts the widespread adoption of large language models in the daily lives of those not previously interested in programming or coding. 

From having a pocket horticulturist to math tutoring, the many different applications of custom GPTs have been pointed out by OpenAI and showcased by independent creators since the public debut of the GPT store.  What has not been made equally clear is the quantifiable impact of the GPT store itself. How many custom GPTs are currently available for use? Where are GPTs being used most commonly? How are these custom GPTs being used? Read on below to better understand the metrics and trends of the custom GPT market. 

What Are GPTs? 

• Generative Pre-trained Transformers, commonly known as GPT, are a family of neural network models that uses the transformer architecture and is a key advancement in artificial intelligence (AI) powering generative AI applications such as ChatGPT. (Source)
• GPTs are custom versions of ChatGPT created by OpenAI users. All you have to do is tell the GPT builder, in plain English, what you want to create, and the builder will take it from there. (Source)
• GPT models give applications the ability to create human-like text and content (images, music, and more), and answer questions in a conversational manner. Organizations across industries are using GPT models and generative AI for Q&A bots, text summarization, content generation, and search. (Source)

How Can I Access the GPT Marketplace? 

• GPTs can be built and shared only among ChatGPT Plus members, who can share their GPTs by sharing a link to their GPT or by publishing their GPT in the OpenAI GPTs store (Source)
• Enterprises with enterprise plans can also access custom GPTs. They may now empower users inside their companies to design internal-only GPTs without code and securely publish them to their workspaces. The admin console lets the enterprise choose how GPTs are shared and whether external GPTs may be used inside the business only. (Source)

** Disclaimer: The data below and any statistics listed hereon that are not explicitly followed by a source reference are part of an in-house analysis conducted by the Originality.ai team. Data visualizations were also produced in-house using data made available on ahrefs. Please be advised that data from ahrefs is updated frequently to represent best estimates rather than concrete figures. ** 

How Many GPTs are there? 

As of mid-February, there are: 

• 3 million GPTs have been created. (Source)
• ~159,000 active GPTs available in the GPT Store. (Source)

(The Custom GPTs Overview contains information from sources noted throughout this article, including Similarweb and OpenAI)

Below we can see a trendline of the total active unique GPT model count over time since the debut of the GPT store in early November 2023:

As we can see in the graph above, the GPT Store has seen a healthy growth in the amount of unique GPT models made available throughout its entire 3-month tenure. On average, users of the GPT store have added more than 3 million bots since the start of the year. (Source) 

Below we can see another graph that details the daily changes of model count including both additions to the GPT store and removals of models from the marketplace:

• From the graph above we can see that for most of the GPT store’s tenure, the daily addition of models was in the range of 500-1000.
  ‍
• Remarkably, between December 29-30, 2023, the amount of additions and losses of GPT models to the GPT store evened out, resulting in no change to total count of models available in the marketplace.
  ‍
• During the period analyzed, only one day out of the 3 months had a negative change in model count, with a decrease of nearly 2000 pages happening on January 20, 2024.
  ‍
• As of February 3, 2024, there has been an upsurge in model additions to the GPT store, with an average of nearly 1500 models added to the marketplace daily.

Where are GPTs most popular? 

As previously mentioned, the total model count is sitting at about 3 million chatbots according to a 2024 Vox article (Source). 

With so many chatbots available, the question arises — where are GPTs most popular? To find out, we analyzed data from Similarweb on the top countries that send the most desktop traffic to gptstore.ai. This data is current as of September 2024:

1. United States - 13.38%
2. Korea - 4.93%
3. India - 4.93%
4. Taiwan - 3.47%
5. Germany - 3.39%
6. Others - 69.9%

(Source)

To add further context to the popularity of custom GPTs by location, Google Trends provides insight. In the past year (October 2023 to October 2024), the top 12 countries noted for Interest by Region in Google Trends for the search term “custom GPT” include:

1. Singapore
2. Estonia
3. New Zealand
4. Denmark
5. Israel
6. China
7. Canada
8. Switzerland
9. Australia
10. Lithuania
11. Netherlands
12. United States

This data provides insight into the regions where developing Custom GPTs is highly popular by highlighting where (which countries) the search “custom GPT” is trending as users seek to learn more about custom GPTs.

Note: This data is current as of mid-October 2024. As Google Trends updates its data, the popularity of GPTs by location is subject to change.

(Source)

What are Custom GPTs being used for? 

As noted above, the applications for which custom GPTs are used for can be nearly limitless. It seems that the limiting factor of GPTs capabilities will at one point be someone’s creativity and ingenuity. That being said all GPTs share the same backbone structure and will require the creator to determine the following settings: 

• Knowledge- If a creator requires a custom GPT to hold particular or specific reference information to guide desired response, creators can upload pdfs or other files to the custom GPT to provide it with the additional needed context as deemed necessary. 
• Capabilities- The default and minimum capability your custom GPT possesses is the ability to surf the web. If desired, the creator can also grant its custom GPT the ability to generate AI (artificial intelligence) images with DALL-E or interpret programming code using GPT-4. 
• Actions- Will your chatbot be able to read and access information from outside sources like an original pdf or word document? Should your chatbot be allowed to follow links provided or provide links itself to third party websites? 

The following table below depicts the most popular type of GPT creations submitted by regular users. Top Keywords in GPT descriptions (excluding words like “Chat” or “GPT”) were used to understand what applications are most attractive to custom GPT consumers:

Looking at the graph above, we can highlight the following insights: 

• Of the top ten custom GPT descriptions, 40% are based on education applications (homeworkify, essay writer, grammar checker, ai math solver).
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• Only one of the top ten descriptions are directed towards the entertainment sector (cowordle).
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• Only three of the top ten descriptions are not text based, with two being image oriented (midjourney and uncrop) and one focusing on voice applications (ai voice generator). 

What are the most popular GPTs?

The following chart displays the most popular custom GPTs on the GPT store, as dictated by the average number of conversations as of March 2024:

1. Image Generator: 6 million+ downloads
   • 176.4K+ all-time reviews (3.6 star-rating)
2. Write For Me: 5 million+ downloads
   • 121.5K+ all-time reviews (4.2 star-rating):
3. Consensus: 5 million+ downloads
   • 80.7K+ all-time reviews (4.3 star-rating)
4. Logo Creator: 3 million+ downloads
   • 172.8K+ all-time reviews (3.5 star-rating)
5. Canva: 3 million+ downloads
   •  97.3K+ all-time reviews (3 star-rating)
6. Scholar GPT: 2 million+ downloads
   • 116.4K+ all-time reviews (4.2 star-rating)
7. Code Copilot: 2 million+ downloads
   • 71.3K+ all-time reviews (4.2 star-rating)
8. Humanizer Pro: 2 million+ downloads
   • 38.3k all-time reviews (3.8 star rating) 
9. Grimoire: 2 million+ downloads
   • 28.2K+ all-time reviews (4.4 star-rating)
10. VideoGPT: 1 million+ downloads
    • 53k all-time reviews (3.9 star-rating)

 According to these statistical insights, we can conclude that many GPTs are used for creative, scholarly, data, or academic goals.

(Source)

Is there any Market Value in Custom GPTs?

Much like the previous models and products offered by OpenAI, the custom GPT store presents a strong market potential. Although the direct revenue directly stemming from the custom GPT store has not been publicly reported we can use the following stats to have a better idea: 

• ChatGPT has become a relied-upon service for many people, as evidenced by the fact that just one year after its introduction, the service has been adopted by around 180.5 million users worldwide.
  ‍
• The market for LLMs is estimated to reach 40.8 billion USD by 2029, up from 10.5 billion USD in 2022.
  ‍
• The only way for regular consumers to access custom GPTs is through a ChatGPT Plus subscription, which currently costs $20USD per month. (Source)

The graph above denotes the organic traffic to custom GPTS and the estimated value of that traffic since the public debut of the GPT store since its launch in November 2023. Looking at this graph above, we can ascertain the following: 

• The custom GPT store draws in around 4-5 million visitors throughout the duration of its tenure. 
• The average value of the organic traffic drawn by the custom GPT store is around $1MUSD. 
• Traffic rose to over 17.8 million visits per day in the first 17 days of May 2024. (Source)
• Hypothetically, using peak traffic, if all site visits came from unique GPT plus subscribers, the revenue derived by the GPT store would be over 100 million USD. Although this is most likely not the case, it stands to illustrate how much OpenAI can stand to earn monthly through its custom GPT store. 

What is the Potential Market Impact Stemming from Custom GPTs? 

After looking at the potential market value that the custom GPT store poses internally for OpenAI’s profit and loss statements, it is equally, if not more, beneficial to look at the external market impact of custom GPTs. As mentioned earlier, custom GPTs can be created and used for a wide variety of tasks and applications, while this potential is enticing, it may also spell for consequential market effects when it comes to job and labor markets. Let’s review a report conducted at the end of May 2024 about AI’s massive impact on the workforce and the employees: 

• Recent 2024 findings reveal that AI may replace up to 300 million jobs worldwide. (Source)
• About 44% of companies that plan on integrating AI technologies believe that it could lead to layoffs. (Source)
• By the end of the decade (2029,) about 14% of workers will be forced to change careers due to the development of AI. (Source)
• About 60% of the jobs that are part of the advanced economies are at risk of being AI-replaced. (Source)
• Only 26% of jobs located in low-income countries are at risk of AI replacing them. (Source)
• Workers between 18 and 24 years of age are 129% more likely to get replaced by AI in comparison to workers over the age of 65. (Source)
• An average of 15% of workers located in the U.S. would accept an AI as a boss. (Source)

The following table runs different models used to estimate the percentage of daily tasks for a specific profession that are exposed to being disrupted by the further implementation of LLM models like custom GPTs. The table lists the professions that were found to be at the greatest levels of exposure according to each individual model, in addition to the table it was found that: 

• Findings indicate that the importance of science and critical thinking skills are strongly negatively associated with exposure, suggesting that occupations requiring these skills are less likely to be impacted by current LLM. (Source)
• Programming and writing skills show a strong positive association with exposure, implying that occupations involving these skills are more susceptible to being influenced by LLMs. (Source)

This table below examines the potential market impact and effects on US domestic labor through a lens of job specific training. Jobs are categorized into zones which denote the level of training required to competently fulfill expected job tasks, using this measure to determine potential risk of exposure to LLM disruption. Aside from the chart it was found that: 

• Upon examining barriers to entry, we observe that the jobs with the least exposure require the most training, potentially offering a lower payoff (in terms of median income) once competency is achieved. (Source)
  ‍
• Conversely, jobs with no on-the-job training required or only internship/residency required appear to yield higher income but are more exposed to LLMs. (Source)

Can Originality.ai Detect Text From Custom GPTs?

With the ever-increasing and evolving lineup of custom generative GPT tools, there’s a growing demand for accurate AI detection tools. Today, we’ve decided to put the detection capabilities of the Originality.ai AI detector to the test by scanning AI-generated text from various custom GPTs in OpenAI’s GPT Store.

We’ll rank each testing result to determine how effective Originality.ai is at detecting AI-generated text produced with prompts of different complexity levels. 

While AI-generated text can help with research, streamline content briefs for writing articles, and provide general assistance, it is not advised to use it as a replacement for authentic human writing. 

OpenAI’s GPT Store contains multiple categories of GPTs, including “Writing,” “Productivity,” “Research & Analysis,” “Education,” “Lifestyle,” and “Programming.”

So, let’s begin with the first custom GPT and see how it holds up against Originality.ai’s professional AI detection tool!

[Test 1] “Write for Me” Custom GPT By Puzzle.Today

One of the most popular writing GPTs in OpenAI’s custom GPT store is the Write for Me tool owned by puzzle.today. As per the description, Write for Me is designed to generate captivating content with a “focus on quality, relevance and precise word count.”

Let’s begin with the tests!

[Prompt #1] - Write a short article (500-1000 words) on the best tourist destinations for 2024.

We’ve received an article output of 950 words that we’ll use to test Originality.ai. Let’s review the results:

As shown by the results, the text was detected as likely AI with 100% confidence. 

For the next prompt, we’ll include more complex instructions to make the article sound as human as possible.

[Prompt #1] - Write a short article (500-1000 words) on the best tourist destinations for 2024. Use a human tone, analyze and mimic the style of a human conversation during the article’s creation. Break up the content into numbered and bulleted lists in a conversational manner.

Let’s have a look at the results:

From the 879 words we’ve scanned from Write for Me’s article, it’s evident that the Originality.ai AI Checker still demonstrates exceptional performance, as it detects the text as likely AI with 100% confidence.

 Now, let’s move on and test other custom GPTs to determine if the outcome is any different.

[Test 2] “Humanize AI” Custom GPT By GPTInf.com

Humanize AI is another popular writing GPT accessible through the GPT Store. The tool can produce DALL·E images, conduct extensive web browsing, and interpret code such as Python. In the GPT Store its description highlights an ability to ‘humanize’ content created by AI, “Humanize your AI-generated content.”

To use Humanize AI and ‘humanize’ AI text, first, we’ll generate a ChatGPT article. 

Here is the first prompt we’ll humanize through Humanize AI:

[Prompt #1] - Write a short article (500-1000 words) on the best tourist destinations for 2024.

We’ve received a 995-word output from ChatGPT that we’ll run through Humanize AI and then scan with Originality.ai. Here are the detection results on the humanized text:

Despite using a ‘humanizer’ tool, the results are once again solid, with 100% confidence that the text is likely AI. Let’s re-attempt the detection with a different prompt and instructions:

[Prompt #2] - Write a short article (500-1000 words) on the best tourist destinations for 2024. Use a human tone, analyze and mimic the style of a human conversation during the article’s creation. Break up the content into numbered and bulleted lists in a conversational manner.

Let’s review the detection results:

From the 884 words scanned with the Originality.ai AI Checker, the text is identified as likely AI with 100% confidence. 

Let’s proceed with the third test to determine if a different GPT can get around Originality.ai’s detection mechanism.

[Test 3] “Copywriter GPT” by Adrian AI Lab

The Copywriter custom GPT is a popular writing GPT. This GPT includes capabilities for interpreting data, coding with Python, and generating DALL·E images. In the GPT Store, it’s described as, “Your innovative partner for viral ad copywriting!”

Let’s determine if Copywriter GPT is able to get past Originality.ai’s detection mechanisms:

[Prompt #1] - Write a short article (500-1000 words) on the best tourist destinations for 2024.

Here’s the result:

From the 905 scanned words, the Originality.ai AI Checker showcases 100% confidence that the text is AI-generated. 

Let’s move on with the second and more complex prompt.

[Prompt #2] - Write a short article (500-1000 words) on the best tourist destinations for 2024. Use a human tone, analyze and mimic the style of a human conversation during the article’s creation. Break up the content into numbered and bulleted lists in a conversational manner.

From the 751 scanned words, the Originality.ai AI Detector reports 100% confidence that the text is likely AI-generated. 

Overall, across each of these tests, Originality.ai demonstrated excellent performance in detecting and identifying AI content generated by GPTs from the GPT store.

Learn more about the efficacy of the Originality.ai AI Checker in our AI Detector Accuracy Review.

Do Custom GPTs Pose Any Potential Risks? 

Aside from the potential job and labor market dynamics that the widespread adoption of custom GPTs may influence, cybersecurity concerns pose another potential risk that has recently been in debate. Cybersecurity experts have published many papers since the launch of the GPT store detailing the many security risks that pose a cause for concern. The following are some highlights of the academic discourse: 

• According to the study “GPT in Sheep’s Clothing: The Risk of Customized GPTs,” custom GPTs can pose several risks. (Source) 
• Users may be vulnerable to privacy and security risks such as information or data theft, third-party phishing (such as the GPT sending a reply that prompts the user to visit an external page), and more. (Source) 
• It’s essential to stay aware and check both the safety and privacy measures of custom GPTs. (Source)
• The study notes that anonymous builders “can only share their GPT via a link; anonymous builders cannot share their GPTs in the GPT store.” However, as GPTs shared via links visually look similar due to the interface, a user could mistakenly believe that the GPT is a legitimate GPT that is available in the GPT Store. (Source)
• Another study notes additional security risks, such as system prompt extraction. The study defines this as “the act of deceiving custom GPTs into disclosing the designed system prompt.” This can lead to intellectual property issues due to the creative investment input by the GPT designer.  (Source)
• File leakage is yet another issue highlighted. According to the study, file leakage refers to “the act of stealing the designer-uploaded files used by the custom GPT.” File leakage can lead to both intellectual property and privacy issues. (Source)

Conclusion

The Custom GPT store has proven to be an innovative platform that revolutionized the way people interact with and utilize large language models and artificial intelligence. Since the release of customizable GPTs in November 2023, and the launch of the GPT Store in January 2024, this platform has gained immense popularity and has helped countless creators and businesses to create innovative GPTs that cater to their unique needs.

Looking at the data and statistics behind the Custom GPT store, we can better understand how the platform works and the extent of the marketplace's reach. After identifying some of the trends that lie within the data, creators are better equipped to create new and innovative GPTs that aim to service underdeveloped markets. In a similar vein, users stand to benefit from this data as they can keep an eye out for labor market patterns that may arise in the next few quarters to determine whether AI or the custom GPT store played an influential role.

Overall, the Custom GPT store has completely transformed the way we think about artificial intelligence and has opened up endless possibilities for businesses and individuals alike. With the platform's immense popularity and continual growth, we can expect to see even more exciting developments in the field of AI in the years to come.