Following a disappointing fourth-quarter earnings report, Pinterest CEO Bill Ready sought to position the digital pinboarding platform as a formidable competitor to the widely-used AI chatbot ChatGPT. Emphasizing its strength as a distinct search destination, Ready noted that the site handles a greater volume of searches than ChatGPT. Citing third-party figures, he shared that ChatGPT processes 75 billion searches monthly, while Pinterest sees 80 billion searches and drives 1.7 billion clicks each month.

“This establishes us as one of the largest search platforms globally. Significantly, over half of our searches are commercially oriented, compared to what I believe is around 2% for ChatGPT,” Ready added.

For the fourth quarter, Pinterest fell short of both revenue and earnings per share forecasts. The company reported revenue of $1.32 billion against an expected $1.33 billion, with earnings per share at 67 cents versus the projected 69 cents. Additionally, it provided a first-quarter 2026 sales outlook ranging from $951 million to $971 million, below the anticipated $980 million.

The company attributed the underperformance to reduced spending by major advertisers, especially in Europe, and disruptions in the home category due to a new furniture tariff introduced in October. These challenges are expected to potentially intensify in the first quarter.

Notably, the earnings miss occurred despite stronger-than-anticipated user growth. Monthly active users rose 12% year-over-year to 619 million, exceeding Wall Street’s forecast of 613 million. Following the report, shares declined 20% in after-hours trading.

Pinterest has consistently faced difficulty converting its platform’s high engagement into advertising revenue, as users often visit to plan and gather inspiration rather than to make immediate purchases. This hurdle may grow more pronounced in the AI era, particularly if advertisers redirect budgets toward platforms with clearer purchase intent—such as chatbots fielding direct product requests.

When questioned about adapting to AI-driven shopping trends, Ready highlighted Pinterest’s visual search, discovery, and personalization tools, which he said guide users to relevant products as soon as they open the app. “We assist them in completing commercial journeys without requiring a single typed prompt,” he explained, also mentioning that the company’s streamlined checkout process, enhanced through its partnership with Amazon, has been beneficial.

Ready observed that consumers do not yet appear prepared to let AI make purchases on their behalf, but affirmed Pinterest would be ready if that shift occurs. “Solving that part of the commercial journey will actually be one of the easiest steps,” he stated.