Digital 2027 Report: One in three people globally now use Gen AI, as social media users reach 5.81 billion

San Francicso, CA, Oct. 21, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Meltwater, the global leader in actionable intelligence for PR, Communications and Marketing teams, and We Are Social, the socially-led creative agency, have released Digital 2027, their latest annual report on social media and digital trends worldwide.

Digital 2027 reveals major milestones in artificial intelligence and social media adoption, with more than a third of the global population now using generative AI tools each month, and social media user identities climbing to nearly 70 percent of the world’s population. The report also highlights a significant shift in online behaviour, pointing to a noticeable decline in traditional web traffic as users spend more time on social platforms, pivot to native mobile apps, and embrace AI-powered platforms.

Gen AI adoption accelerates 

The Digital 2027 analysis estimates that active users of generative AI tools have grown to 3.24 billion – equivalent to 38.9 percent of the global population. Active GenAI users have increased by an impressive 57.2 percent over the past 12 months, adding 1.2 billion new users.

ChatGPT remains the GenAI market leader, attracting twice as many monthly active users as its nearest rival. However, platforms like Google’s Gemini and Anthropic’s Claude are making significant gains, with active users of Gemini’s mobile apps increasing fourfold over the past year, and its web user base now over 60 percent the size of ChatGPT’s.

Social media time and platform loyalty surges 

Global social media user identities now stand at 5.81 billion, equivalent to 69.9 percent of the global population. The global total increased by 2.7 percent over the past year, thanks to the addition of 151 million new user identities.

Crucially for brands, consumers are spending ever more time on these networks. The typical internet user has increased the time they spend on social media and online video platforms by 3.8 percent over the past year, reaching an average of 19 hours and 18 minutes per week.

When looking at where that attention goes, YouTube captured the greatest share of total global social media time, closely followed by WhatsApp and Instagram. When measuring average time spent per active user, TikTok leads with 1 hour and 55 minutes per day. 

Social networks remain a key destination of choice for commerce for younger demographics in particular: 46.9 percent of internet users aged 16 to 24 use platforms like Instagram and Facebook as their primary source of information when researching brands and potential purchases.

Online habits shift 

Digital 2027 highlights how the rise of AI and native mobile apps is reshaping the traditional internet. Across the world’s top 10,000 web domains, total monthly web traffic has declined by more than 10 percent since the public launch of ChatGPT, and the total time spent using the web has fallen by 11.2 percent in just the past 24 months. However, despite AI’s impressive momentum, online adults are still 74 percent more likely to say they visit search engines when researching brands than they are to visit an AI platform, and AI isn’t the only reason web behaviours are evolving.

Digital 2027 is a comprehensive 900-page report covering the entire online ecosystem. It features data from GWI, Similarweb, Statista and more. Other key highlights include:

• A varied marketing mix: The typical online adult now relies on an average of 5.8 different channels to find new brands.
• Global internet penetration: Internet users have reached 6.15 billion, meaning 73.9 percent of the global population is now online.
• Channels with influence: Digital ad spend increased by 8.7 percent over the last year, with social media up 18 percent, and influencer ad spend increasing by 15 percent 
• The ultimate web debate: Google search data confirms cats continue to rule the internet at the end of 2026, fetching 4.15 billion results compared to 4.02 billion for dogs.

“Audiences no longer discover, research or make decisions about brands in one place. They move across news, social platforms, mobile apps and, increasingly, AI assistants. With generative AI adoption growing nearly 60% in the last year alone, LLMs have quickly become an environment where first impressions are formed. For marketers and communicators, visibility is no longer about showing up or counting reach. It means understanding how your brand appears in each environment, which sources and narratives shape their perception, and where brands can credibly influence the conversation. The teams best positioned to build relevance and trust will be those that understand how people discover, discuss and decide, then use that intelligence to focus their strategies and act with confidence,” said Alexandra Bjertnæs, Chief Strategy Officer at Meltwater.

Mobbie Nazir, Global Chief Strategy and Growth Officer at We Are Social said: “The data in Digital 2027 proves that we are experiencing a fundamental shift in how people behave online. With social media use reaching 5.8 billion and gen AI woven into the daily habits of over a third of the world, the competition for attention is fiercer than ever. For marketers, the role of the traditional ‘web’ has changed, which means brands need to go out and actively meet consumers where they are – on social feeds and within AI interfaces. To cut through the noise, brands must focus on creating culturally relevant, compelling ideas that people actually want to engage with and share.”

For more information, please contact:
Kelly Costello
Head of Corporate Communications
pr@meltwater.com

About Meltwater

Meltwater is the global leader in actionable intelligence for PR, Communications, and Marketing teams. By analyzing 1.3 billion pieces of content daily, Meltwater transforms media, social, and AI signals into intelligence that leaders rely on to make faster, more confident decisions. With 27,000 customers worldwide, Meltwater is the intelligence platform global brands trust to stay ahead. 

Meltwater: Intelligence you can act on. 

Learn more at meltwater.com.

About We Are Social

We are a global socially-led creative agency, with unrivalled social media and influencer marketing expertise. With over 1,200 people in four continents, we deliver a global perspective to our clients in a time when social media is shaping culture.

We make ideas worth talking about. We understand social behaviours within online communities, cultures and subcultures, spanning the social and gaming landscape. We build influencer partnerships with impact. 

We work with the world’s biggest brands, including adidas, Samsung, Google and Amazon, to reach the right people in a strategic, relevant and effective way.

We Are Social is part of Plus Company.

To learn more, visit www.wearesocial.com

Kelly Costello Meltwater Kelly.costello@meltwater.com