Kenya leads the world in ChatGPT traffic, outpacing tech giants 🇰🇪🤖

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frica continues to defy tech stereotypes. According to the Global Digital Report released in July 2025 by DataReportal and Meltwater, Kenya now ranks first worldwide in ChatGPT usage. It’s a surprising but telling milestone in a broader digital transformation fueled by a young, curious population and greater access to generative AI tools.

A young, digital-native population 📱

Nearly 42% of Kenyan internet users aged 16 and up used ChatGPT in the past month—a higher rate than many countries traditionally seen as tech powerhouses. This surge reflects how deeply Kenya’s youth—most of whom are under 20—are embracing digital tools to learn, build, and innovate.

From students and freelancers to content creators, people are tapping into the full spectrum of what generative AI can offer. Whether it’s writing, editing, coding, tutoring, or research, ChatGPT is rapidly becoming part of daily digital routines. This uptake is enabled by strong mobile internet penetration, with over 48% of the population connected via mobile data.

Massive traffic, global spotlight 🌐

Kenya isn’t just using ChatGPT—it’s helping drive global traffic. The country ranks third in the world for visits to ChatGPT’s website, contributing 4.81% of all global traffic, behind only the U.S. and India. That’s a staggering position for a country in the Global South, and it cements Kenya’s place in the fast-moving digital landscape.

This spike in engagement comes on the heels of OpenAI’s recent announcement that ChatGPT now processes over 2.5 billion queries a day. While the exact breakdown of use cases remains unclear, the data confirms widespread and diverse adoption across both the Global North and South.

A sign of Africa’s growing tech assertiveness 🚀

Kenya’s rise in this global ranking reinforces a broader shift: Africa is no longer a passive observer in the digital age. It’s participating with boldness and creativity, often bypassing structural limitations through agile, user-driven adoption of new technologies.

Kenya’s ChatGPT success is a powerful example of how AI can drive digital inclusion, skill-building, and grassroots innovation. This surge in usage highlights how some African countries are becoming key players in the global AI ecosystem—not yet as tech producers, perhaps, but certainly as engines of adoption, innovation, and inspiration for the rest of the world.