OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has completely abandoned Google Search, saying he “legitimately cannot tell you the last time I did a Google search” during an explosive dinner interview with tech reporters. The admission comes as ChatGPT reaches 700 million weekly users and threatens to topple Google’s two-decade dominance of the $175 billion search market, with Altman himself serving as the most high-profile convert to AI-powered search alternatives.Speaking to The Verge’s Command Line newsletter and tech reporters in San Francisco, Altman’s personal browsing habits reflect a broader industry transformation. ChatGPT now commands 700 million weekly users and ranks as the world’s fifth-largest website, processing billions of conversations that increasingly replace traditional Google queries.
OpenAI’s rise signals death of traditional search
The numbers tell the story of a seismic shift underway. OpenAI’s API traffic doubled within 48 hours of GPT-5’s launch, while severe GPU shortages reveal overwhelming demand that traditional search engines never generated.Altman confidently predicted ChatGPT will overtake Instagram and Facebook in web rankings, though he acknowledged “beating Google” presents the ultimate test. OpenAI’s planned trillion-dollar data center investments signal the company’s commitment to winning these search wars, as conversational AI fundamentally transforms how people discover information online.
Web publishers brace for AI-driven traffic apocalypse
The implications extend far beyond search engines. Content creators and digital publishers face mounting pressure as Altman predicted “people will go to fewer websites,” a trend that threatens the entire web ecosystem built on clicks and page views.Yet Altman offered publishers a lifeline, suggesting “human-created, human-endorsed, human-curated content all goes up in value dramatically.” This creates a paradox where premium content becomes more valuable even as fewer people visit websites directly, forcing publishers to rethink distribution strategies in an AI-first internet.During the wide-ranging conversation, Altman also expressed interest in acquiring Google Chrome if antitrust regulators force its divestiture, stating “If Chrome is really going to sell, we should take a look at it.”