Sora — an innovative app from OpenAI for generating videos using artificial intelligence — has already achieved a record number of downloads on iOS in its first week after launch, reaching 627,000 installations. This surpasses the initial results of the popular ChatGPT service, which had 606,000 downloads in its first seven days.
This is reported by Finway
Comparison of Sora and ChatGPT Launch
Analysts emphasize that direct comparison of the results is somewhat inaccurate due to different starting conditions. ChatGPT was only available to users in the U.S., while Sora was immediately accessible to both the American and Canadian markets. Specifically, around 45,000 downloads came from Canadian users. When considering only the United States, Sora achieved approximately 96% of ChatGPT’s initial figures.
Despite limited access to Sora, which is still operating on an invitation-only basis, the app has rapidly gained popularity. On its first day alone, it was downloaded over 56,000 times, allowing Sora to secure the third spot in the overall ranking of the American App Store.
Download Dynamics and Popularity Factors
By October 3, 2025, Sora reached the top position in the App Store, surpassing other AI applications, including Claude from Anthropic, Copilot from Microsoft, and Grok from xAI. According to Appfigures, since its release on September 30, 2025, Sora has shown consistently high demand: the maximum daily download rate reached 107,800 on October 1, and has since remained in the range of 84,000 to 98,000 installations per day.
The rapid rise in Sora’s popularity has been largely driven by viral videos created by users with the new Sora 2 model. Examples of hyper-realistic deepfakes, including controversial cases featuring images of deceased individuals, have been widely shared on social media. Such videos involving well-known personalities prompted Zelda Williams, the daughter of actor Robin Williams, to publicly request the cessation of such content distribution.
It was the videos featuring celebrities who have passed away that led Zelda Williams, daughter of actor Robin Williams, to publicly ask for the cessation of such video distribution.
Although the download rates have slightly decreased, experts consider Sora’s figures impressive for an app with limited access. Currently, Sora has established itself among the most successful launches of OpenAI, second only to the initial release of ChatGPT.