OpenAI’s latest update to ChatGPT has sparked a surge in popularity, with its new image-generation tool attracting a record-breaking 150 million users in April, according to market data from Similarweb. The release of GPT-4o has unleashed a wave of creativity online, as users race to transform photos and memes into distinctive visual styles—from The Simpsons and Rick and Morty to South Park and Studio Ghibli-inspired animations.
The upgraded model can now generate hyper-realistic images, logos, and diagrams from simple text prompts, handling up to 20 objects in a single scene. It also allows users to reimagine themselves as Barbie dolls, a trend that quickly took off on social media.
The sudden popularity of these features proved so intense that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman took to social media with an unusual request: “Please chill,” he posted, urging users to ease up as the company grappled with surging demand.
Alongside record user numbers, the platform also saw all-time highs in app downloads and subscription revenue. But the explosion in AI image generation has put significant pressure on OpenAI’s infrastructure—particularly GPUs, the powerful chips required to render complex visuals. Altman noted that the demand has been “insane,” with the company struggling to keep up with user activity.