Graphite published an updated report putting six AI assistants at 76 billion monthly sessions worldwide in September, marking a 37% increase from the previous year, according to Search Engine Journal. The new release leaves out any comparison between AI usage and traditional search engines because of tracking issues involving the Google Android app.
Key takeaways
- Six AI assistants hit 76 billion monthly sessions worldwide in September.
- Graphite dropped search engine comparisons present in its March edition.
- ChatGPT held 60% of global AI referral traffic in July.
- Claude saw a global percentage increase of 1,901% in sessions.
How are monthly AI sessions calculated?
The session counts are Similarweb estimates combining web visits and mobile app sessions, as reported by Search Engine Journal. Desktop apps are left out because reliable data does not exist for them. In March, the agency compared AI usage directly with search engines, but the latest findings show that edition undercounted Google search use coming from the Google Android app.
The Google Android app accounts for roughly 11.8 billion monthly sessions in the United States alone. Because people use this application for translation, image recognition, and Google Discover alongside standard search, the agency states it has no reliable data source to separate general search usage from other features.
What does the data show about AI referral traffic?
Data indicates that AI accounts for less than 1% of traffic on average to websites. Organic search traffic sat at 49 times the volume of AI referrals in the U.S. during the second quarter of 2026, while paid search was eight times higher. Despite this small starting point, worldwide AI referral traffic grew 92% year over year as of July.
ChatGPT led global AI referrals in July at 60%, followed by Gemini at 14% and Claude at 10%. In the U.S., ChatGPT took 66%, Claude reached 11%, and Gemini secured 10%. Meanwhile, mobile devices accounted for 89% of global sessions during the third quarter of 2026.
Why you should check your data sources next
Marketers and planners relying on these metrics need to review how different reports count traffic before building them into a channel plan. Graphite notes that visits triggered by AI answers might show up as direct visits or branded search instead, meaning standard referral reports might miss some of the actual impact.
Frequently asked questions
Six AI assistants reached 76 billion monthly sessions worldwide in September, according to Graphite's updated report cited by Search Engine Journal.
Graphite dropped search comparisons because its previous March edition undercounted Google search use from the Android app, leading the agency to conclude it can no longer reliably compare AI usage sizes with search engines.
According to the report data, AI accounts for less than 1% of traffic on average to websites.
ChatGPT accounted for 60% of AI referral traffic worldwide in July, followed by Gemini at 14% and Claude at 10%.
Claude recorded the largest percentage increase globally at 1,901%, while Perplexity was the only assistant among the six to show a decline, dropping 27%.
Based on reporting by Search Engine Journal. Read the original article
