ChatGPT uninstalls spiked 295% after DoD deal

Uninstalls of the ChatGPT mobile app in the US jumped 295% day-over-day on Saturday, February 28, as consumers responded to news of OpenAI’s deal with the Department of Defense (DoD), which was rebranded under the Trump administration as the War Department.

This data, which comes from market intelligence provider Sensor Tower, represents a significant increase compared to ChatGPT’s typical daily uninstall rate of 9%, as measured over the past 30 days.

Meanwhile, US downloads of OpenAI competitor Anthropic’s Claude software jumped 37% day-over-day on Friday, February 27, and 51% as of Saturday, February 28, after the company announced it would no longer cooperate with the US Department of Defense. Anthropic said it was unable to agree on the terms of the deal due to concerns that AI could be used to surveil Americans and be used in fully autonomous weapons, which AI is not yet prepared to do safely.

The data suggests that a group of consumers appeared to favor Anthropic’s position on the issue.

Additionally, ChatGPT’s download growth was impacted by news of the partnership with the Department of Defense, with US downloads down 13% day-over-day on Saturday, shortly after news of the deal broke. These downloads continued to decline on Sunday, falling 5% day over day. (Prior to the partnership announcement, app downloads increased 14% day over day on Friday.)

These rapid changes were also reflected in Claude’s App Store ranking, as the app reached number one in the US App Store on Saturday, where it continued to sit as of Monday, March 2. This is a jump of more than 20 ratings compared to nearly a week earlier (February 22, 2026).

Consumers are also sharing their opinions on the OpenAI deal in app ratings, with one-star ratings for ChatGPT rising 775% on Saturday, then rising 100% day over day on Sunday, Sensor Tower said. Five-star ratings declined over the same period, falling by 50%.

Other third-party data providers support Sensor Tower’s results.

For example, Appfigures noted that Claude’s total daily downloads in the US on Saturday surpassed those of ChatGPT for the first time. It also saw an increase in Cloud downloads in the US, but its estimates put that number higher: by 88% day over day on Saturday.

She noted that Claude is now the No. 1 free iPhone app in six countries, including Belgium, Canada, Germany, Luxembourg, Norway, Switzerland and the United States.

A third market intelligence provider, Sameweb, said Cloud downloads in the US over the past week were about 20 times what they were in January, but this could be for reasons beyond political issues.