Meta's Muse AI companion reaches 10 million US downloads in 40 days

By Splitfeed EditorialLast updated Oct 20, 2026, 17:20 UTC

On October 20, 2026, data reported by multiple outlets showed that Meta's AI companion app Muse had crossed 10 million US downloads within its first 40 days on the market, with one figure putting the count at 10.9 million. That places Muse among only 12 apps in history to have reached that threshold, a list that includes Meta's own social platform Threads. Beyond the raw download number, Muse is reportedly retaining users at higher rates than competing AI products, suggesting the growth is not simply a curiosity spike. A separate figure, reported alongside the Muse numbers, indicated that ChatGPT downloads have fallen 25%, though neither Meta nor OpenAI has publicly addressed that claim.

The milestone matters for reasons that extend past a single app's launch week. An AI companion product reaching 10 million downloads faster than almost any app in history signals a potential consumer shift toward AI tools designed around ongoing personal interaction rather than one-off query assistance. If the reported 25% decline in ChatGPT downloads reflects a real redistribution of users rather than a seasonal dip, it would mark a meaningful change in the competitive landscape between Meta and OpenAI. Separately, research firm Autonomous flagged that Muse AI agents could pose longer-term risks to loss costs in the reinsurance sector, a concern rooted in the idea that autonomous AI acting on behalf of users could generate liability and claim patterns that existing risk models do not anticipate.

None of the three camps, Pro-AI, Anti-AI, or Middle Ground, had published specific reactions to this story by the time of reporting. Pro-AI voices would typically treat a consumer adoption milestone of this scale as confirmation that AI companions are entering mainstream use and that the technology is delivering enough value to sustain user engagement over time. Anti-AI voices would be expected to raise concerns about the social and psychological implications of millions of people forming habitual relationships with an AI companion, alongside the systemic risks the Autonomous report flags for insurance markets. A Middle Ground perspective would likely welcome the evidence of genuine retention while pressing for clearer disclosure about data practices and the long-term consequences of embedding AI agents into daily personal decisions.

The arguments most worth watching over the coming months are whether Muse retention holds past the 90-day mark, whether OpenAI releases any response to the reported download decline, and whether the reinsurance sector begins pricing Muse-related agent activity into its models as Autonomous has suggested it eventually must.