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Chegg is a well-known online education platform. It offers a range of services including textbook rental, homework help, online tutoring and career advice.
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Chegg has been in business since 2005 and has become one of the leading providers of online education solutions.
However, Chegg’s user base has been declining since the launch of ChatGPT, a new AI chatbot that can answer any question and help with any task.
ChatGPT is an AI chatbot developed by OpenAI, an AI research company. ChatGPT is based on the GPT-3 family of large language models that can understand and produce human-like responses to textual stimuli. ChatGPT was released in November 2022 and has quickly become one of the most popular and widely used applications in the world.
ChatGPT can converse with users on any topic and assist them with activities such as writing emails, essays, programming and more. ChatGPT is also free to use, with no restrictions on how many questions or requests users can ask.
The enhanced conversational and generative capabilities of ChatGPT have posed a significant challenge to Chegg’s business model. Many customers have switched from Chegg to ChatGPT for their academic and professional purposes, citing ChatGPT’s ability to provide faster, cheaper and more accurate answers than Chegg.
For example, ChatGPT can help users solve arithmetic problems, clarify ideas, provide textbook answers, detect plagiarism, generate citations and write articles. Through its Thinkful service, ChatGPT can also provide career advice, internship opportunities and skills bootcamps.
ChatGPT’s adaptability and accessibility have made it a popular choice for students and professionals seeking online education and support.
According to the latest UBS reports, Chegg’s revenue and user growth has slowed dramatically since the launch of ChatGPT. In 2022, Chegg’s revenue grew by only 9% year on year, compared to 57% in 2021. Chegg’s subscription services revenue grew by only 9% year on year in 2022, compared to 63% in 2021.
Chegg’s user base also remained flat in 2022 at 8.2 million users, with no growth year on year. ChatGPT, on the other hand, reached 100 million active users in January 2023, barely two months after its launch. ChatGPT also outperformed Chegg in terms of engagement and retention, with users spending more time on ChatGPT and asking more questions than on Chegg.
Chegg faces several challenges in competing with ChatGPT and retaining its user base. One of the biggest challenges is the quality and reliability of its services. Many users have complained about Chegg’s inaccurate or outdated answers, slow or unresponsive tutors, high prices, and poor customer service.
Chegg has also been criticized for enabling academic dishonesty among students who use its services to cheat on their assignments or exams. Another challenge is innovation and differentiation of its services. Chegg has not been able to keep up with the rapid development and improvement of ChatGPT’s technology and features.
ChatGPT has constantly updated its language models and added new features to improve user experience and satisfaction. Chegg has also not been able to provide unique or value-added services that ChatGPT cannot provide or replicate.
Despite the decline in its user base and revenue, Chegg still has some opportunities to recover and grow its business. One of these opportunities is to leverage its brand recognition and reputation in the online education market.
Chegg has been a trusted and established name in the industry for over a decade and has built a loyal customer base over the years. Chegg can leverage its brand equity and credibility to attract new users who are looking for reliable and reputable online education providers. Another opportunity is to diversify its product portfolio and target new segments.
Chegg can expand its offerings beyond textbook rentals and homework help to include other services such as test preparation, online courses, certification programs, mentoring, coaching, etc. Chegg can also target new segments such as adult learners, professionals, hobbyists, etc. who are interested in learning new skills or advancing their careers.
