Better Offline – Monologue: ChatGPT's Growth Is Collapsing In Europe
Podcast: Better Offline
Host: Ed Zitron (Cool Zone Media & iHeartPodcasts)
Release Date: October 17, 2025
Episode Overview
This solo episode of Better Offline, hosted by tech industry veteran Ed Zitron, explores the striking slowdown and near-collapse of ChatGPT’s subscription growth throughout the major European markets. Zitron unpacks exclusive data, contextualizes it within broader industry patterns, and analyzes what this means for OpenAI’s future outside the U.S. It’s equal parts deep-dive, industry critique, and darkly comic commentary on tech hype cycles and Silicon Valley’s business models.
Main Discussion Points & Insights
1. Context: Why AI, Why Now? (00:36–02:30)
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Ed Zitron acknowledges recent episodes have focused heavily on AI topics, citing continued industry upheaval and the demand for accessible analysis:
- “Every day Sam Altman tells somebody he’s gonna give them a billion dollars. It’s all so silly and I do feel like it’s not being covered very thoroughly. So I’m doing my best to do so.” (00:57)
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He teases forthcoming episodes and reaffirms a commitment to diverse tech coverage, but concedes that AI will likely remain central due to ongoing public interest and industry drama.
2. The Data: ChatGPT Europe Subscription Decline (02:31–04:38)
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Zitron details a recent Fortune article citing Deutsche Bank data that shows a collapse in ChatGPT’s paid subscription growth across major European markets:
- “OpenAI subscription growth in Europe has stalled and is, and I quote, flatlining in the major European markets over the past four months.” (02:54)
- Cites transaction data from the UK, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain—together about 15% of ChatGPT’s global user base.
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He summarizes the volatility and ultimate decline in subscription growth:
- Growth “dropping from 10% in June 2023 to below 0% in August 2023,” with modest rebounds tied to AI product launches but nothing resembling sustained growth. (03:24)
3. Comparison to Other Tech Revolutions (04:39–05:36)
- Ed draws comparisons to the growth trajectories of previous tech revolutions (e.g., Facebook, Uber, cloud computing), underscoring how ChatGPT’s European spiral is unique:
- “I can find no example of a successful software revolution that started with high growth and tumbled into the abyss in Europe. It didn’t happen with Facebook… It didn’t happen with the smartphone or cloud computing… This is a steady decline.” (04:48)
4. Regulations & Product Parity: It’s Not GDPR’s Fault (05:37–06:00)
- Zitron clarifies that the GDPR (Europe’s data privacy regulations) is not what’s holding ChatGPT back:
- “This is nothing to do with Europe’s General Data Protection Regulations or the GDPR… I’ve independently confirmed with European ChatGPT users that the product is basically identical over there. Europe just happens to be rejecting ChatGPT. They don’t want to pay for it.” (05:41)
- He points out that spikes in growth linked to major feature launches are becoming “less pronounced each time.”
5. Ad Revenue Pipe Dreams & Market Realities (06:01–07:15)
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Discussion of OpenAI’s lack of advertising expertise and the limitations of pivoting to ad-supported models, especially under regulation:
- “The GDPR, by the way, will make it difficult for OpenAI to launch advertising, which I will add, will not be the saving grace for this company because Google and Meta’s massive advertising revenues come from decades of data and expertise… OpenAI can’t just copy that.” (06:24)
- Humorous aside on a competitor: “Perplexity, that AI search engine… made $20,000 selling ads in 2024. That’s bollocks. It’s terrible. You make more selling dogs.” (06:47)
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Zitron warns against assuming new business lines will magically solve OpenAI’s problems, noting there’s “no real evidence” they can find one.
6. Broader Significance: The Puncturing of the AI Bubble (07:16–08:00)
- Zitron frames the collapse of European growth as a sign of wider trouble for the AI sector’s growth narrative:
- “It really is hard to read this as anything other than air escaping the bubble. It’s being pierced, I swear to God. And perhaps it’s the era of smiles beginning. A specter is haunting Silicon Valley, the face of the smiling man. And I hope you’ll join me every week to find out how this shit bursts or, I don’t know, whatever crazy crap Sam Altman promises next.” (07:42)
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- On the stagnation of ChatGPT subscriptions in Europe:
- “OpenAI subscription growth in Europe has stalled and is, and I quote, flatlining in the major European markets over the past four months.” (02:54)
- On AI product launches being less and less effective at generating growth:
- “The boosts that OpenAI gets from throwing out new products… they’re becoming less pronounced each time.” (05:56)
- On OpenAI’s struggles to pivot to ad-supported revenue:
- “Perplexity, that AI search engine… made $20,000 selling ads in 2024. That’s bollocks. It’s terrible. You make more selling dogs.” (06:47)
- On European user attitudes:
- “Europe just happens to be rejecting ChatGPT. They don’t want to pay for it.” (05:45)
- On tech industry hype:
- “It really is hard to read this as anything other than air escaping the bubble. It’s being pierced, I swear to God.” (07:42)
Important Timestamps
- 00:36–02:30: Host’s introduction, AI focus rationale, upcoming episode teasers
- 02:31–04:38: Presentation of Fortune/Deutsche Bank data, summary of subscription growth/decrease statistics
- 04:39–05:36: Comparisons to previous tech product rollouts in Europe
- 05:37–06:00: Dismissing GDPR as the culprit
- 06:01–07:15: Commentary on ad-based revenue and OpenAI’s lack of alternative business models
- 07:16–08:00: Big-picture framing — AI “bubble” narrative and what comes next
Tone & Style
Zitron combines a wry, self-aware humor with deeply skeptical, sometimes exasperated tech commentary. The episode is lively, sharply critical, and loaded with analogies and asides (e.g. auctioning dogs, CES plans, references to Kill Bill music). Zitron’s style remains accessible, conversational, and irreverent—even as he delivers a sobering analysis of a tech industry darling’s woes.
In summary:
This monologue is a critical, engaging breakdown of why ChatGPT’s paid subscriptions are failing to take hold in Europe, what that reveals about consumer adoption of generative AI, and why Silicon Valley’s usual growth playbook may be failing—delivered in Ed Zitron’s characteristically sharp, darkly funny voice.