Google’s Gemini just found itself a cheat code for virality.
The popular AI chatbot’s new “nano-banana” image tool has taken the online world by storm, flooding feeds with toy-like 3D figurines and Bollywood-style edits.
The trend has spread like wildfire from India to the U.S., spawning millions of creations, tutorials, and how-tos.
The numbers have been impressive, to say the least, with Gemini logging 12.6 million downloads so far in September, up 45% month-over-month following the late-August launch of nano-banana.
If the momentum holds, the ripple effects will be massive, pointing to a major shakeup in the AI pecking order.
That said, a huge new development suggests Gemini may finally be gaining ground on a familiar foe in the AI race.
The rivalry between ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini takes a viral “nano-banana” twist.
Image source: James/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
Google’s Gemini overtakes ChatGPT in viral surge
Google’s AI app Gemini just ascended to the top of Apple’s App Store in the U.S. and UK, blowing past OpenAI’s ChatGPT and even Meta’s Threads. In the UK, it also edged past Temu, the fastest-growing e-commerce app from PDD Holdings.
The surge stems from Gemini 2.5 Flash Image, aka nano-banana, which launched back in late August.
The tool allows users to “blend multiple images into a single image, maintain character consistency for rich storytelling, make targeted transformations using natural language, and use Gemini’s world knowledge to generate and edit images,” according to a Google for Developers blog post.
In just a few weeks, users generated north of 500 million images with the app, attracting 23 million new users.
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Gemini’s nano-banana wave mirrors earlier viral features, like ChatGPT’s Ghibli-style portraits, highlighting how shareable outputs can spark incredible mass adoption.
Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL) recently topped the $3 trillion market cap, and its stock is up more than 30% year-to-date.
Analysts are of the view that if Gemini sustains App Store dominance, investors will view it as a core product that complements, rather than replaces, Google Search.
Gemini climbs fast, but ChatGPT still rules in reach
ChatGPT still tops the charts when it comes to the largest installed base in consumer AI, with it becoming the quickest app to hit 1 billion global downloads this summer.
Google’s Gemini is looking to close that gap, and nano-banana, among other trends, will help bridge that gap.
ChatGPT also stands out for its strength with a mature paid stack (Plus, Team/Business, Enterprise) along with a wide ecosystem for teams.
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Also, Gemini’s edge is deep integration across Gmail, Docs, Drive, and Android, along with more consumer and pro tiers under Google AI plans.
Pricing is mostly at parity for entry tiers, with enterprise choices hinging on whether a company is already on Workspace.
AI chatbots by the numbers:
- Total users/downloads
- ChatGPT: 5.72 billion+ users worldwide.
- Gemini: 450 monthly active users, but recent #1 App Store ranking shows rapid adoption.
- Edge: ChatGPT (scale)
- Gemini: Downloads surged 45% month-over-month in September
- Edge: Gemini (momentum)
- ChatGPT Plus: $20/month
- Gemini AI Pro: $19.99/month
- Edge: Tie on price, but Gemini emerges as the winner for Google app integration
- ChatGPT: $25-$30/user/month (Team & Business tiers)
- Gemini: $30/user/month for Workspace with advanced features
- Edge: OpenAI is apparently better in terms of cross-platform teams, but Google is ahead for Workspace users
- ChatGPT: Broad agent/tools ecosystem along with robust team controls
- Gemini: Deep Gmail/Docs/Drive integration along with premium AI Ultra tier
- Edge: ChatGPT (ecosystem), Gemini (integration & tiering)
- GenAI: Apps logged 1.7 billion downloads along with 15.6 billion usage hours in the first half of 2025
- Edge: Rising tide lifts both AI apps and its peers
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