Kenya now ranks first globally in ChatGPT usage, with 42.1% of internet users aged 16 and above having used the AI tool in the past month, according to the July 2025 Global Digital Report published by DataReportal and Meltwater.
The report, released this week, places Kenya ahead of traditionally tech-forward nations such as the United Arab Emirates (42%), Israel (41.4%), Malaysia (39.8%), and Brazil (39.7%). At the bottom of the rankings are Russia (10.8%), China (7.3%) and Japan (5.8%).
Kenya also ranked third globally in ChatGPT web traffic, accounting for 4.81% of all visits, trailing only the United States and India.
The findings underscore how quickly generative AI tools are becoming embedded in everyday digital life across Kenya, as the country builds out one of the continent’s most active tech ecosystems.
Analysts point to two main drivers of Kenya’s high engagement with ChatGPT. The first is its young, tech-literate population, with a median age of 20. Many Kenyans are experimenting with AI for education, small businesses, and creative projects. The second is broad mobile internet access, with 48% of the population using mobile data regularly, making ChatGPT easily accessible even outside major cities.
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The report follows new figures released by OpenAI, which revealed ChatGPT processes over 2.5 billion prompts daily worldwide. While the company did not break down usage by region or purpose, the tool remains widely used for tasks such as writing, tutoring, coding, and general queries.
Kenya’s emergence as a leader in AI adoption highlights the growing role of generative AI in shaping digital participation and productivity across Africa.
