ChatGPT is the most widely used artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot among internet users in Indonesia, narrowly ahead of Google Gemini, according to the Digital 2026: Indonesia report published in October 2026 by DataReportal, We Are Social, and Meltwater (11/11).

The report cites a second-quarter 2026 survey conducted by research company GWI, which found that 46.5% of Indonesian internet users aged 16 and above had used ChatGPT through its website or application during the previous month. Google Gemini followed closely, with 45.1% of respondents reporting usage over the same period.

The difference between the two platforms was just 1.4 percentage points. However, the figures do not represent exclusive users, as respondents could have used both chatbots.

ChatGPT Leads AI Chatbot Usage in Indonesia

The GWI survey identified ChatGPT and Google Gemini as the two most widely used AI chatbots among the Indonesian respondents.

The report does not specify the exact number of adult internet users represented by the survey. It also notes that the usage percentages should not be interpreted as separate shares of users because one person may use multiple AI platforms.

AI Tool Adoption Reaches 94.9% Among Indonesian Internet Users

The report also highlights the widespread use of AI tools in Indonesia. According to the same GWI survey, 94.9% of respondents said they had used at least one AI tool during the previous month.

Despite this high adoption rate, paid AI subscriptions remained relatively uncommon. Only 9.9% of respondents said they had paid for an AI service subscription during the previous month.

Meanwhile, 28.3% reported feeling comfortable using AI tools.

Information Search Is the Main Reason Indonesians Use AI

Searching for information was the leading reason Indonesian internet users used AI, according to GWI's survey of active AI users aged 16 and above in the second quarter of 2026.

A total of 66.3% of respondents said they used AI to find information. Getting advice or solutions to problems ranked second at 46.2%, followed by learning or improving skills at 44.8%.

Other common purposes included creating or improving images and videos, reported by 43.7% of respondents, and saving time or improving efficiency, at 40.1%.

The report identified the following 10 reasons for using AI:

1. Searching for information: 66.3%.
2. Getting advice or solutions to problems: 46.2%.
3. Learning or improving skills: 44.8%.
4. Creating or improving images and videos: 43.7%.
5. Saving time or improving efficiency: 40.1%.
6. Getting personalized recommendations: 33.9%.
7. Entertainment: 29.5%.
8. Creating or improving written content: 23.6%.
9. Managing health and well-being: 18.7%.
10. Other reasons.

AI tools were also used for activities related to brands and product purchases. The survey found that 28.2% of respondents used AI to search for information about brands and consider product purchases.

Another 18.9% said they had discovered new brands or products through AI platforms.

ChatGPT Dominates AI-Driven Website Referral Traffic

ChatGPT also recorded the largest share of website referral traffic generated by AI platforms in Indonesia, according to Statcounter data cited in the Digital 2026: Indonesia report.

The data measures visits to external websites through links shared in AI chatbot responses. When users click a link provided by an AI platform and visit another website, the visit is recorded as referral traffic from that platform.

ChatGPT accounted for 85.40% of the total referral traffic generated by the AI platforms included in the analysis.

Perplexity ranked second with 7.75%, followed by Google Gemini at 4.38%. Claude contributed 2.05%, while Microsoft Copilot accounted for 0.41%.

The figures show a difference between monthly chatbot usage and website referral traffic. Although ChatGPT and Gemini recorded relatively close monthly usage rates in the GWI survey, ChatGPT accounted for a much larger share of AI-generated website referrals in the Statcounter data.

The report emphasizes that Statcounter's figures measure the proportion of referral traffic from the AI platforms analyzed, not the number of users or the overall popularity of each chatbot.

PHOTO: UNSPLASH

This article was created with AI assistance.

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