OpenAI Expresses Interest in Acquiring Google Chrome Amid Antitrust Fallout

OpenAI Wants Google's Chrome: What That Might Mean for You

At Google's antitrust trial, an OpenAI executive says the company is interested in acquiring the Chrome browser business. As Google continues to deal with government scrutiny over its search and advertising business practices (with the possibility that parts of its business will need to be broken off hanging in the air) OpenAI has thrown its hat into the ring for the company's browser business. In testimony during Google's antitrust trial this week, OpenAI's Head of Product for ChatGPT Nick Turley testified that the AI giant would be interested in buying the Google Chrome browser. The executive said that ChatGPT is "years away from its goal of being able to use its own search technology to answer 80% of queries," according to a report from Reuters. Turley said in his testimony that attempts to work with Google on a deal to bring the company's search results to work within ChatGPT were declined by Google. Representatives for OpenAI and Google did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Google Chrome is the dominant web browser in the world with about a 64 percent market share. The closest competitor is Apple's Safari browser at 21 percent, according to Similarweb. The company introduced the web browser back in 2008. A web browser owned by a company that is focused on artificial intelligence would likely go through some major transformations as Google's business model is ad-based and OpenAI's income is largely derived from large investments, licensing of its AI technology and subscriptions to its popular ChatGPT service. It's unclear whether Chrome would continue to be closely tied to Google's services such as Gmail and search under OpenAI's ownership, but it's very likely that ChatGPT would be integrated into the browser software. Keith Kakadia, an AI content strategist and CEO of the social media company Sociallyin, said that if OpenAI were to buy Chrome or make its own version of it by forking the technology, "it would be in a position to redefine the way we interact with the web." "Think of a browser that not only renders pages -- but also helps, predicts and creates content with you in real time," Kakadia said. "It would blur the distinction between search engine, co-pilot and creative tool.". An AI-driven browser, he said, might involve less "Googling" and more active commands. "You won't search for recipes, but instead instruct your browser to prepare a meal plan based on the contents of your fridge. Rather than completing forms, your browser could auto-fill multi-step workflows with intelligent context." For users, that AI assist might not always be completely welcome. Kakadia added that OpenAI will need to manage expectations around transparency and privacy. "People want to be helped, but they don't want to feel like they're being watched," he said. "If OpenAI is successful, it will not be a browser. It would be your AI-native portal to the web."

Money, Chrome, and ChatGPT: The high stakes of Google's monopoly trial

David Pierce is editor-at-large and Vergecast co-host with over a decade of experience covering consumer tech. Previously, at Protocol, The Wall Street Journal, and Wired. Near the beginning of his opening arguments, David Dahlquist, a lawyer for the US Department of Justice, showed a slide that he described as Google's "vicious cycle." It goes like this: Google pays billions of dollars to be the default search engine practically everywhere, thus it gets more search queries, thus it gets better data, thus it is able to improve its results, thus it makes more money, thus it can afford more defaults. Google doesn't really disagree with this assessment -- but in it's telling, that's a virtuous cycle. Another way to describe it is as the virtuous cycle that makes Google Search so powerful: Google believes it's created a perfect system; the DOJ thinks it's a nightmare. A judge will make the final call. Dahlquist's remarks were the opening salvo of the remedies phase of US v. Google, a landmark antitrust case that ended with judge Amit Mehta finding last year that Google's search engine is a monopoly. The question in the courtroom this time, to be litigated over the next two weeks, is what to do to fix it. And according to Dahlquist, the process has to start by stopping every part of the cycle from spinning. The DOJ is asking for three broad things. First, it wants to prevent Google from striking pretty much any kind of deal for prime search engine placement. The most obvious version of this deal, and a central figure in the original trial, is the $20 billion Google pays Apple annually to be the default search engine in Safari. But Google has deals like these around the industry, and others that make search placement a condition of other Google services. The DOJ wants to shut them all down. Second, it wants Google to divest Chrome, which Dahlquist called "a significant gateway to search... and a starting point for 35 percent of user queries." By one metric shown in the trial, Chrome has more than four billion users, and the government's lawyers argued that it should be a separate entity altogether. Google believes Chrome is not a self-sufficient business, and only makes sense as part of Google, but Jonathan Sallet, a lawyer representing the states, argued it would be a big get for anyone. "This kind of asset," he said, "does not come up very often for companies to acquire. The third thing the DOJ wants is to require Google to license practically all its search data, from the search index to its results, to any competitor who wants it. So far, this appears to be the provision that has Google most concerned. John Schmidtlein, one of the lead attorneys representing Google in the case, argued in his own opening remarks that what the DOJ is asking for would essentially mean white-labeling Google and making it available to competitors around the industry. In the long run, Schmidtlein argued, competitors would be able to use Google's search index to build and train their own products, while Google is essentially forbidden (thanks to the other parts of the remedies) from making the deals and investments required to keep winning. But even in the near term, he said, "while they're figuring all that out, you can cut and paste Google's search results and call them your own." Schmidtlein also argued that Google's search data includes massive quantities of private information, which would be dangerous for other companies to have. One of the key questions in this trial will be what a fair search market actually looks like. Google's case has always been that it became a dominant player in search simply by being the best search engine, and that it would be absurd for the court to allow competitors to create their own Google without much extra work. Google has given up ground in only one place: its default placement deals with companies like Apple. It argues that the last trial was dominated by questions about these deals, and preventing them (but only if they're exclusive agreements, notably) would level the playing field. Beyond that, Schmidtlein called the DOJ's remedies "a wish list for competitors looking to get the benefits" of Google's work. The DOJ's argument, on the other hand, is that Google has built itself a nearly insurmountable lead through its illegal actions, and so the only fair thing to do is help competitors catch up. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella testified during the original trial that the only way to build a great search engine is with a nearly unobtainable amount of search data -- and that Google had made sure it was the only company with that data. Mehta's early questions seem to suggest he thinks some of the data-sharing and licensing provisions would amount to a "structural remedy," which requires a higher burden of proof. But there will be a lot of questions to come about how to make the fight fair. During the trial in 2023, the AI market came up only occasionally, but now it appears to be front and center for both sides. The DOJ's proposed remedies are so severe, Dahlquist argued, because "Google is using the same strategy they did for search, and applying it to Gemini." But he was also careful to say that he doesn't think AI and search are the same thing, and that the rise of ChatGPT in particular should not convince the court that the search market is in fact plenty competitive. Google, of course, argues that ChatGPT proves precisely that the search market is in fact plenty competitive. Schmidtlein referenced OpenAI CEO Sam Altman's tweets about how viral ChatGPT was, and an internal OpenAI document that said the company feels "we have what we need to win." "These companies are competing just fine without Plaintiffs' remedies," Schmidtlein said. AI talk will be a fixture in the courtroom the next couple of weeks. Sissie Hsiao, who previously led the Gemini team, will be on the witness stand. So will executives from OpenAI and Perplexity, and a series of experts who will attempt to explain how AI stands to both fit into and upend the search business. It was telling that the trial's very first witness was an AI expert, Greg Durrett, who spent much of his testimony simply explaining how the technology works. There's still a lot of trial and a lot of negotiation left, of course, but as it stands the two sides are remarkably far apart. Google, which plans to appeal the case in its entirety, thinks all will be fair as long as it's easier to pick your own search engine. The government believes that Google in its current form cannot be allowed to exist. Judge Mehta, who asked a number of questions about the precedent for some of these requests, seems to be continually calibrating his own tolerance for sweeping change. If there's an easy way to arrive at some middle ground that works for everybody, it hasn't come up in court.

OpenAI exec signals interest in Chrome

ChatGPT maker to join line of suitors if Chocolate Factory forced to offload browser OpenAI's head of product for ChatGPT has flung the company's hat into the ring as a potential suitor for Google's Chrome browser should the search giant be forced to divest itself of the application. Nick Turley was called to testify during a trial to determine the fate of Google following allegations of anti-competitive behavior. In answer to a question regarding whether OpenAI would be interested in picking up the browser, Turley reportedly said: "Yes, we would." Chrome is the most popular browser in the world by a considerable margin. As of March 2025, its desktop market share was almost 66 percent. Second placed was Microsoft's Edge at 13.35 percent. In 2024, the US Department of Justice proposed that Google sell off the browser as part of a remedy to curb it's alleged monopolistic practices. Proposals also included prohibiting Google from paying to make its search engine the default for third parties, such as Mozilla. The focus of the discussion was the possible divestiture of Chrome. While it is possible to drop OpenAI's chatbot, ChatGPT, into Chrome via an add-in, deeper integration would increase the tech's omnipresence. "You could offer a really incredible experience," Turley said. Users would get an introduction "into what an AI-first experience looks like." Arguably, a user could also fire up Microsoft Edge and hit the Copilot button if they wanted to know what an AI might do to their browsing experience. Turley told the court that OpenAI has struggled when it came to distribution. While ChatGPT made it onto the iPhone through a deal, Android has been tougher to crack - partly due to Google's alleged ability to outspend rivals to promote Gemini as the premier AI assistant on its platform. Turley acknowledged there would be no shortage of potential buyers if Google were forced to offload Chrome. In addition to the "incredible experience" in store for users, OpenAI would benefit from integration. The company's weekly active user count exceeded 400 million in February 2025, but Chrome has at least three billion users, many of whom are already accustomed to the sometimes dubious search summaries served by Google's Gemini AI.

Google contemplated exclusive Gemini AI deals with Android makers

WASHINGTON, April 22 (Reuters) - Alphabet's (GOOGL.O), opens new tab Google contemplated deals with Android phone makers such as Samsung last year that would provide exclusivity for not only its search app, but also for its Gemini AI app and Chrome browser, according to a document shown at the second day of an antitrust trial. The U.S. Department of Justice and a broad coalition of state attorneys general are seeking an order from a judge in Washington that would require Google to sell its Chrome browser and take other measures. They hope to end what the judge found was Google's monopoly in online search and related advertising. In that ruling, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta found that Google protected its search monopoly through exclusive agreements with Samsung Electronics (005930.KS), opens new tab and others to have its search engine installed as the default on new devices. Google entered a new, non-exclusive agreement with Samsung on April 1 that includes no restriction on the smartphone maker loading alternative search products, according to a document shown at trial. Google had proposed loosening its agreements to address Mehta's ruling but had not announced it was already doing so. Prosecutors raised concerns in opening statements on Monday that Google's search monopoly could give it advantages in AI, and that its AI products are another way to lead users to its search engine. OpenAI's ChatGPT head of product Nick Turley is expected to take the stand on Tuesday and testify about how Google's exclusive agreements make it harder to distribute AI products such as ChatGPT. Google has said the case is not about AI, and that it faces robust competition from companies including Meta Platforms (META.O), opens new tab. Reporting by Jody Godoy in Washington, Editing by Nick Zieminski Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab Suggested Topics:Boards, Policy & RegulationRegulatory Oversight Jody Godoy Thomson Reuters Jody Godoy reports on tech policy and antitrust enforcement, including how regulators are responding to the rise of AI. Reach her at jody.godoy@thomsonreuters.com

A potential new buyer for Google Chrome has stepped forward, and you may not like who it is

Summary OpenAI expresses interest in buying Google Chrome to enhance its AI-based search capabilities. Potential acquisition of Chrome follows issues with OpenAI's current search engine supplier. Concerns arise regarding transferring Chrome to another tech giant, raising questions about competition in the market. Yesterday, we saw a very interesting development in the tech world. After Google lost its antitrust case back in August 2024, the court resumed discussing how best to break apart the tech company's grip and allow competition to thrive. On Monday, we saw the judge presiding over the case make an interesting proposition: they stated they wanted Google to sell Chrome to another company. As you might imagine, companies worldwide became interested in owning the most widely used browser in existence. Well, one company has come forward with a proposal, and you may not like it if you're sick and tired of AI. Related Hands-on: Opera's new browser is one of the coolest Chrome rivals yet Opera Air has a lot of potential Posts 3 OpenAI puts forward its proposal for Google Chrome As reported by Reuters, the AI giant OpenAI told the court that it was very interested in purchasing Chrome should Google be forced to buy it. As discussed in an email to Google itself, OpenAI at first wanted to try buying out the search engine: "We believe having multiple partners, and in particular Google's API, would enable us to provide a better product to users." As you may know, OpenAI has been working diligently to design its own AI-based search engine. However, it has currently run into issues with its current supplier. If OpenAI were to acquire Google's website, algorithm, and API, it would be a significant boost for ChatGPT-powered search. However, given how OpenAI was denied the search engine, it seemingly wants to get its foot in the door by taking over Chrome instead. The question is, if Google is forced to sell Chrome, would there be limitations on who could buy it? One could argue that handing Google's reins over to a company like OpenAI is simply moving the browser over from one giant to another, and it may need to go to a smaller business, potentially a direct competitor to Google. We'll have to see how things pan out. If OpenAI does win, how will Google Chrome look? There is a good chance that the company will utilize the platform to promote ChatGPT and its services more effectively. You'll likely see assistants akin to Microsoft Edge's Copilot that can help you with your browsing. It'll also be a big blow to Google's own AI assistant, Gemini.

OpenAI says it would buy Chrome if Google is forced to sell

Google is under the microscope following that it has a monopoly over online search, but the future of its vast suite of digital services is still uncertain at this stage. Last month, the Justice Department suggested that Google would need to sell off the Chrome browser; if the tech giant does make that move, there's already at least one interested buyer. Bloomberg reports that Nick Turley, head of ChatGPT, spoke at a hearing today about the Google monopoly situation and was asked whether OpenAI would be interested in acquiring Chrome. "Yes, we would, as would many other parties," he said. Users can currently use the ChatGPT AI assistant in Chrome through a plugin, but Turley said there could be deeper integrations if OpenAI owned the browser. Under OpenAI's hypothetical ownership, Chrome could "introduce users into what an AI first experience looks like." Chrome isn't the only property Google may lose control over. A separate judge determined earlier this month that Google has also been engaged in anti-competitive behavior over . It's no surprise that any other major tech operation would be interested in acquiring one of the many popular services Google has developed over the years. The real question is which one of them landing a purchase wouldn't create a new monopoly. For now, the DOJ is allowing Google to continue its AI investments amid the break-up talk, but adding the browser to OpenAI's holdings may raise new concerns. Since the wheels of justice often turn slowly, it may be a while before we learn the outcomes of the recent Google rulings.

OpenAI wants to buy Chrome if Google is forced to sell

The big picture: If Google really is forced to sell Chrome - as proposed by the DOJ after the company was ruled a monopoly in its antitrust trial - OpenAI could emerge as a potential buyer. The ChatGPT maker has admitted it's interested in acquiring the world's most popular browser and turning it into an "AI-first" experience. Following Judge Amit Mehta's ruling that Google was a monopolist in online search last year, the Justice Department pushed for the immediate sale of Chrome. The remedies phase of the trial began this week in Washington. Nick Turley, head of product for ChatGPT at OpenAI, was one of the DOJ's witnesses on Tuesday. He testified that OpenAI had contacted Google last year about a partnership that would improve ChatGPT. The chatbot already uses Bing's search data, but Turley mentioned there had been "significant quality issues" with a company referred to as "Provider No. 1," which was likely a reference to Microsoft. "We believe having multiple partners, and in particular Google's API, would enable us to provide a better product to users," OpenAI told Google in an email that was revealed during the trial. Google turned down the offer as it believed the deal could harm the company's lead in search. Turley added that OpenAI doesn't have any partnership with Google today. Turley was also asked if OpenAI would be interested in purchasing Chrome if Google is forced to sell its browser. "Yes, we would, as would many other parties," he replied. In November 2024, reports claimed OpenAI was considering releasing a Chromium-based web browser with ChatGPT integration that could compete with Chrome. The company hired two key Chrome developers last year, Ben Goodger and Darin Fisher, founding members of the Chrome team. Chrome has dominated the global browser market since its user share passed Internet Explorer in 2012. Today, it has a 66% overall share and 4 billion users. Second-place Safari has an 18% share. If OpenAI were to buy Chrome, Turley predicted that it would become an "AI-first" experience. That means tight integration with ChatGPT and other OpenAI products, while data from those billions of users could be used to train its AI systems. Another judge this month ruled that Google built and maintained an illegal monopoly in key segments of the online display advertising industry. The decision could lead to the government breaking up Google's advertising operations.

OpenAI wants to buy Google Chrome and make it an 'AI first' browser

The ChatGPT chief said that acquiring Chrome would give OpenAI "the ability to introduce users into (sic) what an AI-first experience looks like." Many people would find deeper AI integration to be useful, but modern generative AI services are far from perfect. Google has more than its fair share of embarrassing moments in the field, such as its image generator creating diverse Nazis and its AI Overviews providing incorrect and dangerous answers. Meanwhile, Apple's own notification summaries feature on iOS has made headlines for its poor, alarmingly inaccurate results. ChatGPT isn't immune to wildly incorrect answers or hallucinations, either. So we can understand why you'd think an "AI-first" Chrome browser under OpenAI would be a bad idea.

OpenAI Would Totally Buy Chrome From Google, in Case Anyone Was Wondering

What red-blooded tech company wouldn't want a huge install base and the advantage of self-dealing? As the federal government and Google work through potential remedies for the company's illegal monopoly over online search, OpenAI is interested in purchasing the Chrome browser, should the court order it be sold off to loosen Google's grip on the market. According to Bloomberg, Nick Turley, OpenAI's head of product for ChatGPT, signaled the AI company's interest in the browser while on the stand testifying at the behest of the Department of Justice. To be fair, OpenAI's interest in Chrome is not unique. Turley stated "many other parties" would also want to buy the browser should it become availableâ€"and understandably so, seeing as Chrome has about 3.45 billion users globally and holds a nearly two-thirds share of the browser market. Turley and OpenAI also have another compelling reason to suggest there would be a lot of interest in Chromeâ€"Turley's testimony could help sway the court's decision to break the browser free of Google's control. Whether OpenAI ends up buying it or not, it has a much better shot at doing business with whoever owns a spun-off version of Chrome than with Google, given that it made zero headway trying to get ChatGPT natively integrated into Google's ecosystem. Earlier in the trial, Turley testified that search technology would be key to OpenAi's goal of building a "super assistant," but Google, who is one of OpenAI's biggest competitors in the AI space, has shut OpenAI out. Turley laid out some specifics as to why OpenAI would want in on the browser. First and foremost: Distribution. Getting ChatGPT onto more devices has apparently proven a challenge for the company. While it does have integration on iOS devices, Turley claims getting on Android devices has been more difficult, in part because Google allegedly gave some preferential treatment to Gemini, its consumer focused AI product. But also because Google is paying some Android phone makers. The DOJ told the court Monday that Google paid an “enormous sum of money in a fixed monthly payment" to Samsung in order to get Gemini pre-installed on the company's devices. OpenAI apparently made a bid for that same access, but lost out. Turley said that was "not a lack of trying," per Bloomberg. Turley also expressed concern that OpenAI "may be shut out" by some of the bigger companies who "control the access points for how people discover products, including our product." Apple and Google both maintain control of the app stores for their mobile phones which means that Google can prioritize its own product, Gemini, and Apple can prioritize whomever (ChatGPT is currently number two on the iOS Top Free Apps list). This would all probably register as a slightly more genuine concern if OpenAI weren't also propped up by a $13 billion investment from Microsoft, which has in turn integrated the startup's AI model into its search (okay, it's Bing, but still), browser, AI suite, and standalone devices. And it's a little hard to imagine OpenAI would operate Chrome as some sort of bastion of open access and not a way to drive users directly to its own search product, ChatGPT Search. Heck, if it wanted a browser so badly it could just build one off of Chromium, the open source web browser that's maintained by Google and used as the foundation for multiple browsers including Microsoft Edge, Opera, and Google Chrome. OpenAI has reportedly considered getting into the browser business already, starting conversations about building its own back in November of last year. Yet getting its hands on Chrome would kickstart that whole process. But simply getting Chrome out of Google's hands might be more important to OpenAI.

ChatGPT maker OpenAI wants to buy Chrome from Google

Google is having a bit of a moment. It's not quite an Enron- or FTX-style "abandon ship" situation, but between two separate US antitrust rulings on its core search and advertising businesses, it's a five-alarm fire. One of the possible outcomes is Google selling off the Chrome browser... and it looks like one possible buyer is OpenAI, maker of ChatGPT. OpenAI's head of product for ChatGPT is named Nick Turley, and he testified at the remedy phase of the Department of Justice's successful monopoly suit against Google. When asked if OpenAI would be interested in buying the Chrome browser from Google, Turley didn't mince words. "Yes, we would," he responded, "as would many other parties." That's according to The Information. The fact that plenty of other companies would be interested in relieving Google of the burden of Chrome isn't surprising. It's the most popular browser on the planet, and its open-source Chromium codebase powers most other browsers (including Microsoft's Edge, Opera, plus smaller players like Brave, Vivaldi, and Arc). The only major players left on the market that don't use Chromium are Firefox and Apple's Safari. Divested of its deep ties to Google for search, advertising, and mobile integration on Android, Chrome would be less of a crowning jewel of web properties. But it would still be enormously beneficial, a potentially huge profit-maker all on its own. And more pertinently, it would be even more useful in a broader technology toolbox for a tech giant like Microsoft. They've been pretty desperate to gain back ground in the browser wars ever since Internet Explorer lost its dominance. But let's examine this from the perspective of OpenAI. Despite being in its infancy, the popularity of ChatGPT and the broader rise of "AI" tools has propelled OpenAI to the forefront of the tech industry. OpenAI's GPT underlies Microsoft's Copilot system, and it's integrated into more and more products and services every day (for better or worse). Meanwhile, CEO Sam Altman is rubbing shoulders with elites from industry and government. Even so, some critics have questioned OpenAI's ability to continue on its current trajectory without some kind of giant technological leap. Despite a massive increase in profile and billions in revenue, the company has yet to turn a profit, and does not expect to for years at least. Suddenly, having the keys to the world's most popular browser would change a lot of variables in that equation. It would, almost certainly, put ChatGPT and other generative AI tools front and center in the way most users experience the web. It would make OpenAI a direct competitor to companies like Apple and its current partner Microsoft. It would put it on the map for the same kind of advertising and user data tracking that got Google in trouble in the first place. And perhaps most importantly, it would give OpenAI a treasure trove of data from billions of users around the world, all the better to train its models. Most of this is educated guessing, albeit fairly obvious conclusions to draw. The DOJ wants Google to be forced to split off Chrome in some capacity, but we'll have to see if the federal judge actually goes for that as a punitive option. And assuming that happens, Google will exhaust every legal possibility (and probably spend a small country's GDP on lawyers in the process) to hold onto one of its most important business assets. If all that comes to pass and Chrome is still put up on the auction block, the buyer might be subject to yet more approval in the US and beyond. The situation is, in a word, complicated. And there's not much we can do in the meantime but wait and see how it plays out.

OpenAI wants to buy Chrome if Google is forced to sell -- here's what that could look like

In a strange turn of events, we could see the dominant force in Search, Chrome, fall into the hands of OpenAI. Google is currently wrapped up in a trial to address whether it holds too much of a monopoly on the search market. If Google were to lose this trial, it could be forced to sell Chrome to balance out the competition. While it's not clear if Google will have to sell off Chrome, or even if OpenAI would be able to buy it, the AI giant has made it clear that it would quite happily take it on if the opportunity arose. Last year, OpenAI contacted Google about a potential partnership allowing ChatGPT to use Google's search technology, but it was turned down. In the trial, an email was shown from OpenAI to Google which stated: "We believe having multiple partners, and in particular Google's API, would enable us to provide a better product to users." ChatGPT uses technology from Microsoft's Bing search tool, as the company currently has no relationship with Google. OpenAI has already launched ChatGPT Search and has shown that, like other AI companies, it wants a slice of the search pie. By getting its hands on Chrome, OpenAI would be able to combine the powers of ChatGPT and Chrome, as well as take on the massive audience that Chrome already has. More importantly, Chrome would offer OpenAI a gigantic pie of data for their training modules. If OpenAI did get its hands on Chrome, this could give the brand a massive advantage. In the original trial (this has been going on for a while), Microsoft's CEO Satya Nadella made the point that the only way to build a great search engine was with an incredibly large amount of data -- an amount of data that only Google really has. This gives Google a major advantage over the competition. It was also argued that Google is now using the same technique with its massive data reserves to get ahead with its AI model, Gemini. Unsurprisingly, Google argues that OpenAI is already a competitive force in the tech world and it could also become a monopoly if it gained Chrome. For now, it is unclear where this will all go. The trial is still ongoing but as things progress, we could soon see a new owner for Chrome, whether that's OpenAI or some other tech giant.

Google search engine monopoly could expand using AI, DOJ warns

Its use of artificial intelligence is also supporting its search engine Google faces an antitrust trial over its alleged misuse of AI products, which could be perceived to be strengthening its dominance in online search - something it's already under the microscope about. The Department of Justice has set out to break Google's monopoly over the search market, potentially reshaping the internet landscape by giving other companies a chance to get in on the action. With the investigation ongoing, it's unclear what consequences Google might face, but it's been suggested that it might be forced to sell off its Chrome browser to pacifiy lawmakers and settle the antitrust investigation. The DOJ argues that Google's monopoly enhances its AI products, further boosting its dominance, however the US agency has suggested that broader, forward-looking remedies could be needed due to the growing nature of generative AI. DOJ attorney David Dahlquist explained that Google's search monopoly helps improve its AI products, but they also act as a way to entice users to the search engine, highlighting the intertwined nature of the company's products and the complex nature of the lawsuit. Among the deals highlighted at the trial was Google's monthly payment to Samsung, which allows the company to pre-install the Gemini AI app on devices. The payment amounts to an "enormous sum," Dahlquist said. Very nearly 90% of all online searches use Google (via Statcounter), with Chrome accounting for around two-thirds of all online sessions. Google's exclusive agreements to be the default search engine have already been criticized in relation to its monopoly, including its $20 billion payment to Apple in 2022 alone (via Bloomberg). Google has said that its AI products are unrelated to the search engine case (via Reuters) and that it plans to appeal once a final judgment is made.

Google on trial: The future of Chrome, AI search, and the internet

A Google-free Chrome could be coming soon... Credit: Gabby Jones/Bloomberg via Getty Images Last summer, Google lost a landmark antitrust case. U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta declared that "Google is a monopolist," finding the company acted illegally to maintain dominance over the search engine market. Now, Google is back in court -- this time for the remedy phase of the case, where the U.S. government argues what actions Google should be forced to take to dismantle its monopoly. The Department of Justice (DOJ) wants to break up the tech giant. Google is fighting to convince the judge that less drastic steps would address concerns, without handing an advantage to foreign rivals. No matter the outcome, this trial is likely to reshape how the internet works. This case is separate from the antitrust suit Google lost earlier this month over its ad tech monopoly (not to mention a recent antitrust action against Google in Japan). So, these remedies don't involve Google Ad Manager or its advertising tools. Instead, this trial's outcomes could affect nearly everyone who uses the internet. To break Google's hold over the search market, the DOJ has proposed several potential remedies: At the top of the DOJ's list: force Google to divest Chrome, its dominant web browser. The government argues Chrome gives Google an unfair edge by directing users to Google Search by default. With around 66 percent of the global web browser market share, Chrome is tightly integrated with Google's search engine, reinforcing the company's dominance. Already, AI rival OpenAI has expressed interest in buying Chrome. Selling Chrome would be a worst-case scenario for Google, but it's not the only remedy on the table. The DOJ also wants Google to share some user data with rival companies to help foster competition in the search market. A core issue in the original case was Google's whopping $20 billion-per-year deal with Apple to be the default search engine on iPhones. The DOJ wants to ban such agreements going forward, not just for search, but also for emerging technologies like AI. For instance, the government wants to prevent Google from paying device makers to exclusively use its AI assistant, Gemini, as generative AI becomes a standard smartphone feature. Rather than forcing Google to sell Android, its mobile operating system, the DOJ is pushing for a different remedy: unbundling. If approved, this would mean third-party Android phone makers could ship devices without pre-installed Google apps like Search or the Play Store, giving users more freedom to choose alternatives. Google has made it clear: it disagrees with the verdict. Now, it's focused on fighting the proposed remedies and appealing the ruling. This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed. In a post on its official blog, the company said the DOJ's proposals would hurt consumers, weaken the U.S. economy, and damage America's position as a tech leader. It called the remedies an example of an "interventionist agenda." Google's defense is that People use its products because they like them, not because they're forced to. It argues that breaking up its services or changing default settings would only inconvenience users. To support its case, Google is expected to call on allies like Apple, Microsoft, and Mozilla. Mozilla, for instance, has said it depends on Google's funding for its Firefox browser -- a relationship Google will highlight to show that its partnerships support the broader internet ecosystem. Google will also heavily emphasize user safety and privacy in its defense. Chrome is based on Google's open-source Chromium platform, which powers browsers like Microsoft Edge and Opera. Google will argue that a forced sale of Chrome would make it harder to maintain security updates and protect user privacy, not just for Chrome but also for all Chromium-based browsers. The company will likely utilize the same security and privacy argument to fight back against the DOJ remedy that would force Google to share its search data with competitors. Google is also expected to stress the implications of sharing user data with foreign competitors. It wouldn't be surprising to see Google point to AI companies like China's DeepSeek to make the case that the U.S. government would be ceding ground to these foreign competitors by breaking up Google. As for remedies, Google has its own suggestions. The company says it would provide smartphone makers with more "flexibility" in choosing which apps are pre-loaded on Android devices. Google will also argue that partnerships like the one with Apple should be allowed to exist, but again, with more "flexibility" regarding the exclusivity of such a deal. This case isn't just about today's search engines. It's about the future of AI and how we access information online. Google has warned that the DOJ's remedies could "chill" its innovation in AI, which it calls "perhaps the most important innovation of our time." In court, Google may downplay its AI dominance and point to OpenAI's growing influence in the search business as proof of a competitive market. OpenAI, for its part, is watching closely. During the trial, one executive even said the company would be interested in buying Chrome if Google is forced to sell. That raises a question: Would replacing one tech giant with another really solve the problem? Whatever the courts decide, this trial and its verdict will likely cause reverberations across the internet.

OpenAI would buy Chrome if Google is forced to sell it

As the fate of Chrome hangs in the balance of the Google antitrust trial, one thing is clear: OpenAI wants to buy it. During the ongoing remedy phase of the Department of Justice's case against Google, OpenAI executive Nick Turley testified on Tuesday that his company would be interested in buying Chrome if Google was forced to sell it. Selling the Chrome web browser is one of the DOJ's proposed remedies for breaking up Google's search monopoly. Turley, head of product for ChatGPT, was a DOJ witness during the hearing. When asked whether OpenAI would be interested in buying Chrome if Google was forced to divest it, Turley said, "Yes, we would, as would many other parties," as Bloomberg reported. OpenAI is one of Google's chief rivals in the artificial intelligence arms race, and acquiring Chrome could be quite the coup for OpenAI. Chrome currently has around 66 percent of the browser market share. U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled last summer that "Google is a monopolist" in the search market. Now, the trial is in its remedy phase, where the court will decide how exactly to break up Google. Besides divesting from Chrome, the DOJ has also suggested that Google could share its search data with other companies. Enter, OpenAI. Turley also testified that OpenAI approached Google last summer to strike a licensing deal for its search data for developing its ChatGPT search product, which connects ChatGPT to the web for real-time search answers. But Google turned down the offer from its rival, which has siphoned off users who prefer using ChatGPT instead of traditional search engines. Through OpenAI's partnership with Microsoft, ChatGPT's real-time search uses Bing. But Turley (without naming Microsoft) said forcing Google to share its search data would "'allow us to build a better product faster' by 'improving the quality of real-time information,'" according to The Information. The outlet previously reported that OpenAI was looking into building its own web browser, even hiring two central people from the Chrome division. An OpenAI web browser with ChatGPT at the forefront and increasing agentic capabilities for autonomous web browsing could be a critical new piece in the user experience. So, while losing Chrome would be a massive blow to Google's business, losing Chrome to OpenAI could have big implications for the future of the internet as we know it.

US urges curb of Google's search dominance as AI looms

US government attorneys urged a federal judge Monday to make Google spin off its Chrome browser, arguing artificial intelligence is poised to ramp up the tech giant's online search dominance. The Department of Justice (DOJ) made its pitch at a hearing before District Judge Amit Mehta, who is considering "remedies" after making a landmark decision last year that Google maintained an illegal monopoly in online search. "Nothing less than the future of the internet is at stake here," Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater said prior to the start of the hearing in Washington. "If Google's conduct is not remedied, it will control much of the internet for the next decade and not just in internet search, but in new technologies like artificial intelligence." Google is among the tech companies investing heavily to be among the leader in AI, and is weaving the technology into search and other online offerings. Google countered in the case that the United States has gone way beyond the scope of the suit by recommending a spinoff of its widely used Chrome, and holding open the option to force a sale of its Android mobile operating system. The legal case focused on Google's agreements with partners such as Apple and Samsung to distribute its search tools, noted Google president of global affairs Kent Walker. "The DOJ chose to push a radical interventionist agenda that would harm Americans and America's global technology leadership," Walker wrote in a blog post. "The DOJ's wildly overbroad proposal goes miles beyond the Court's decision." The DOJ case against Google regarding its dominance in internet search was filed in 2020. Google's battle to protect Chrome renewed just days after a different US judge ruled this month that it wielded monopoly power in the online ad technology market, in a legal blow that could rattle the tech giant's revenue engine. The federal government and more than a dozen US states filed the antitrust suit against Alphabet-owned Google, accusing it of acting illegally to dominate three sectors of digital advertising -- publisher ad servers, advertiser tools, and ad exchanges. The vast majority of websites use Google ad software products that, combined, leave no way for publishers to escape Google's advertising technology, the plaintiffs alleged. District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema agreed with most of that reasoning, ruling that Google built an illegal monopoly over ad software and tools used by publishers, but partially dismissed the argument related to tools used by advertisers. "Google has willfully engaged in a series of anticompetitive acts to acquire and maintain monopoly power in the publisher ad server and ad exchange markets for open-web display advertising," Brinkema said in her ruling. The judge concluded that Google further entrenched its monopoly power with anticompetitive customer policies and by eliminating desirable product features. Online advertising is the driving engine of Google's fortune and pays for widely used online services like Maps, Gmail, and search offered free. Money pouring into Google's coffers also allows the Silicon Valley company to spend billions of dollars on its artificial intelligence efforts. Combined, the courtroom defeats have the potential to leave Google split up and its influence curbed.

Trial testimony reveals OpenAI interest in Chrome: reports

OpenAI is ready to buy Chrome if Google is forced to sell its popular browser as part of an antitrust trial, a top executive testified Tuesday, according to media reports. OpenAI product manager Nick Turley revealed the startup's interest in the world's most popular internet browser while testifying in court in Washington, D.C. Turley spoke in front of a judge who will decide what remedies to impose on Google after making a landmark decision last year that the tech giant maintained an illegal monopoly in online search. U.S. government attorneys have urged Judge Amit Mehta to force Google to sell off its Chrome browser, arguing artificial intelligence is poised to ramp up the tech giant's online search dominance. Google countered in the case that the U.S. government has gone way beyond the scope of the suit by recommending it be forced to sell Chrome and holding open the option to force a sale of its Android mobile operating system. The legal case focused on Google's agreements with partners such as Apple and Samsung to distribute its search tools, noted Google president of global affairs Kent Walker. "The DOJ chose to push a radical interventionist agenda that would harm Americans and America's global technology leadership," Walker wrote in a blog post. "The DOJ's wildly overbroad proposal goes miles beyond the Court's decision." A Bloomberg analyst has estimated the price of Chrome browser, which has more than 3 billion users, at $15 billion or more. Turley said during his testimony that OpenAI had approached Google about integrating its search technology into ChatGPT artificial intelligence powered digital assistant but was rebuffed, according to media reports. Google is among the tech companies investing heavily to be among the leaders in AI, and is weaving the technology into search and other online offerings. The DOJ case against Google regarding its dominance in internet search was filed in 2020. Mehta ruled against Google in August 2024 and the tech giant has appealed.

Google faces off with U.S. government in attempt to break up company in search monopoly case

WASHINGTON -- Google is confronting an existential threat as the U.S. government tries to break up the company as punishment for turning its revolutionary search engine into an illegal monopoly. The drama began to unfold Monday in a Washington courtroom as three weeks of hearings kicked off to determine how the company should be penalized for operating a monopoly in search. In its opening arguments, federal antitrust enforcers also urged the court to impose forward-looking remedies to prevent Google from using artificial intelligence to further its dominance. "This is a moment in time, we're at an inflection point, will we abandon the search market and surrender them to control of the monopolists or will we let competition prevail and give choice to future generations," said Justice Department attorney David Dahlquist. The proceedings, known in legal parlance as a "remedy hearing," are set to feature a parade of witnesses that includes Google CEO Sundar Pichai. The U.S. Department of Justice is asking a federal judge to order a radical shake-up that would ban Google from striking the multibillion dollar deals with Apple and other tech companies that shield its search engine from competition, share its repository of valuable user data with rivals and force a sale of its popular Chrome browser. Google's attorney, John Schmidtlein, said in his opening statement that the court should take a much lighter touch. He said the government's heavy-handed proposed remedies wouldn't boost competition but instead unfairly reward lesser rivals with inferior technology. "Google won its place in the market fair and square," Schmidtlein said. The moment of reckoning comes four-and-a-half-years after the Justice Department filed a landmark lawsuit alleging Google's search engine had been abusing its power as the internet's main gateway to stifle competition and innovation for more than a decade. After the case finally went to trial in 2023, a federal judge last year ruled Google had been making anti-competitive deals to lock in its search engine as the go-to place for digital information on the iPhone, personal computers and other widely used devices, including those running on its own Android software. That landmark ruling by U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta sets up a high-stakes drama that will determine the penalties for Google's misconduct in a search market that it has defined since Larry Page and Sergey Brin founded the company in a Silicon Valley garage in 1998. Since that austere start, Google has expanded far beyond search to become a powerhouse in email, digital mapping, online video, web browsing, smartphone software and data centers. Seizing upon its victory in the search case, the Justice Department is now setting out to prove that radical steps must be taken to rein in Google and its corporate parent, Alphabet Inc. "Google's illegal conduct has created an economic goliath, one that wreaks havoc over the marketplace to ensure that -- no matter what occurs -- Google always wins," the Justice Department argued in documents outlining its proposed penalties. "The American people thus are forced to accept the unbridled demands and shifting, ideological preferences of an economic leviathan in return for a search engine the public may enjoy." Although the proposed penalties were originally made under President Joe Biden's term, they are still being embraced by the Justice Department under President Donald Trump, whose first administration filed the case against Google. Since the change in administrations, the Justice Department has also attempted to cast Google's immense power as a threat to freedom, too. In his opening statement, Dahlquist noted that top officials from the Justice Department were in the room to watch proceedings. He said their presence indicated that the case had the full support of federal antitrust regulators, both past and present. "The fact that this case was filed in 2020, tried in 2023, under two different administrations, and joined by 49 states demonstrates the non-partisan nature of this case and our proposed remedies," Dahlquist said. Dahlquist also said that Mehta would be hearing a lot about AI -- "perhaps more than you want, your honor," -- and said top executives from AI companies, like ChatGPT, would be called to testify. He said the court's remedies should include provisions to make sure that Google's AI product, Gemini, isn't used to strengthen its existing search monopoly. "We believe that Google can and will attempt to circumvent the court's remedies if it is not included," Dahlquist said. "Gen AI is Google's next evolution to keep their vicious cycle spinning." Schmidtlein, Google's attorney, said rival AI companies had seen enormous growth in recent years and were doing "just fine." Google is also sounding alarms about the proposed requirements to share online search data with rivals and the proposed sale of Chrome posing privacy and security risks. "The breadth and depth of the proposed remedies risks doing significant damage to a complex ecosystem. Some of the proposed remedies would imperil browser developers and jeopardize the digital security of millions of consumers," Google lawyers said in a filing leading up to hearings. The showdown over Google's fate marks the climax of the biggest antitrust case in the U.S. since the Justice Department sued Microsoft in the late 1990s for leveraging its Windows software for personal computers to crush potential rivals. The Microsoft battle culminated in a federal judge declaring the company an illegal monopoly and ordering a partial breakup -- a remedy that was eventually overturned by an appeals court. Google intends to file an appeal of Mehta's ruling from last year that branded its search engine as an illegal monopoly but can't do so until the remedy hearings are completed. After closing arguments are presented in late May, Mehta intends to make his decision on the remedies before Labor Day. The search case marked the first in a succession of antitrust cases that have been brought against a litany of tech giants that include Facebook and Instagram parent Meta Platforms, which is currently fighting allegations of running an illegal monopoly in social media in another Washington D.C. trial. Other antitrust cases have been brought against both Apple and Amazon, too. The Justice Department also targeted Google's digital advertising network in a separate antitrust case that resulted last week in another federal judge's decision that found the company was abusing its power in that market, too. That ruling means Google will be heading into another remedy hearing that could once again raise the specter of a breakup later this year or early next year.

US urges curb of Google's search dominance as AI looms

Washington (AFP) - US government attorneys urged a federal judge Monday to make Google spin off its Chrome browser, arguing artificial intelligence is poised to ramp up the tech giant's online search dominance. The Department of Justice (DOJ) made its pitch at a hearing before District Judge Amit Mehta, who is considering "remedies" after making a landmark decision last year that Google maintained an illegal monopoly in online search. "Nothing less than the future of the internet is at stake here," Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater said prior to the start of the hearing in Washington. "If Google's conduct is not remedied, it will control much of the internet for the next decade and not just in internet search, but in new technologies like artificial intelligence." Google is among the tech companies investing heavily to be among the leader in AI, and is weaving the technology into search and other online offerings. Google countered in the case that the United States has gone way beyond the scope of the suit by recommending a spinoff of its widely used Chrome, and holding open the option to force a sale of its Android mobile operating system. The legal case focused on Google's agreements with partners such as Apple and Samsung to distribute its search tools, noted Google president of global affairs Kent Walker. "The DOJ chose to push a radical interventionist agenda that would harm Americans and America's global technology leadership," Walker wrote in a blog post. "The DOJ's wildly overbroad proposal goes miles beyond the Court's decision." The DOJ case against Google regarding its dominance in internet search was filed in 2020. Google's battle to protect Chrome renewed just days after a different US judge ruled this month that it wielded monopoly power in the online ad technology market, in a legal blow that could rattle the tech giant's revenue engine. The federal government and more than a dozen US states filed the antitrust suit against Alphabet-owned Google, accusing it of acting illegally to dominate three sectors of digital advertising -- publisher ad servers, advertiser tools, and ad exchanges. The vast majority of websites use Google ad software products that, combined, leave no way for publishers to escape Google's advertising technology, the plaintiffs alleged. District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema agreed with most of that reasoning, ruling that Google built an illegal monopoly over ad software and tools used by publishers, but partially dismissed the argument related to tools used by advertisers. "Google has willfully engaged in a series of anticompetitive acts to acquire and maintain monopoly power in the publisher ad server and ad exchange markets for open-web display advertising," Brinkema said in her ruling. The judge concluded that Google further entrenched its monopoly power with anticompetitive customer policies and by eliminating desirable product features. Online advertising is the driving engine of Google's fortune and pays for widely used online services like Maps, Gmail, and search offered free. Money pouring into Google's coffers also allows the Silicon Valley company to spend billions of dollars on its artificial intelligence efforts. Combined, the courtroom defeats have the potential to leave Google split up and its influence curbed.

Trial testimony reveals OpenAI interest in Chrome: reports

New York (AFP) - OpenAI is ready to buy Chrome if Google is forced to sell its popular browser as part of antitrust trial, a top executive testified Tuesday, according to media reports. OpenAI product manager Nick Turley revealed the startup's interest in the world's most popular internet browser while testifying in court in Washington DC. Turley spoke in front of a judge who will decide what remedies to impose on Google after making a landmark decision last year that the tech giant maintained an illegal monopoly in online search. US government attorneys have urged Judge Amit Mehta to force Google to sell off its Chrome browser, arguing artificial intelligence is poised to ramp up the tech giant's online search dominance. Google countered in the case that the US government has gone way beyond the scope of the suit by recommending it be forced to sell Chrome and holding open the option to force a sale of its Android mobile operating system. The legal case focused on Google's agreements with partners such as Apple and Samsung to distribute its search tools, noted Google president of global affairs Kent Walker. "The DOJ chose to push a radical interventionist agenda that would harm Americans and America's global technology leadership," Walker wrote in a blog post. "The DOJ's wildly overbroad proposal goes miles beyond the Court's decision." A Bloomberg analyst has estimated the price of Chrome browser, which has more than three billion users, at $15 billion or more. Turley said during his testimony that OpenAI had approached Google about integrating its search technology into ChatGPT artificial intelligence power digital assistant but was rebuffed, according to media reports. Google is among the tech companies investing heavily to be among the leaders in AI, and is weaving the technology into search and other online offerings. The DOJ case against Google regarding its dominance in internet search was filed in 2020. Mehta ruled against Google in August 2024 and the tech giant has appealed.

OpenAI exec tells judge hell yeah, we'll buy Chrome -- and stuff it full of AI!

An ongoing US antitrust trial may result in Google being forced to sell off its popular web browser, Chrome, in order to increase competition in the search market. And should that come to pass, an OpenAI executive has told the judge they'd be very interested in snapping it up: and, naturally, cramming a load of AI features in there. ChatGPT head of product Nick Turley testified on Tuesday in Washington, where the US Department of Justice (DOJ) is examining the various ways it can put the screws to Google in order to restore competition in online search (thanks, Reuters). The judge in the case has already found that Google has a monopoly in online search and by extension all related advertising. At this stage, Google has refused to countenance a sale of Chrome, and plans to appeal the ruling that found the company holds a monopoly in online search. OpenAI was called by the government because prosecutors in the case are raising concerns that Google's online search monopoly could also give it advantages in AI, and AI advancements in turn could be another way for it to point users back to its own search engine. For its part Google points to the obvious competition in the AI field from the likes of Meta, Microsoft, and of course OpenAI, which for now is arguably the leading firm in the field. Google's lawyer produced an internal OpenAI document during proceedings, in which Turley wrote that ChatGPT was in a leading position in the consumer AI market, and did not see Google as its biggest competitor. Turley testified that Google had blocked an attempt by OpenAI to incorporate Google's search technology within ChatGPT (it currently uses Microsoft's Bing instead). "We believe having multiple partners, and in particular Google's API, would enable us to provide a better product to users," reads an email from OpenAI to Google sent in July last year. Google declined the offer in August. This matters because one of the DOJ's proposals is to force Google to share search data with competitors which, unsurprisingly, Turley said would help ChatGPT improve faster. Turley went on to say that search is a critical aspect of ChatGPT's usefulness to users, and says the company is years away from being able to use its own search technology to answer 80% of user searches (notably, the company recently hired ex-Google Chrome developers Ben Goodger and Darin Fisher). He further noted that forcing Google to share its search data would enhance competition. Then the literal money shot. Asked whether OpenAI would buy Google's Chrome browser if that were an option, Turley said "yes, we would, as would many other parties." He went on to say that this would allow OpenAI to "offer a really incredible experience" and "introduce users into what an AI-first [browser] looks like" (thanks, Bloomberg). Should the DOJ ultimately succeed in forcing Google to sell Chrome, there would be intense competition. Chrome boasts a 67% market share and an estimated four billion users worldwide. Any company would fall over itself to obtain an installed base like that, and the prospect of integrating its own services would have any executive needing a very cold shower. Whether it would benefit users is another question: Chrome already incorporates various AI features, as do Google's wider product suite, and I'm firmly in the "more annoying than useful" camp. AI advocates will paint a different picture of the future of search, however, and we all know the Dylan golden rule: money doesn't talk, it swears.

Google hits back as DOJ pushes to break its stranglehold on web search - SiliconANGLE

Google hits back as DOJ pushes to break its stranglehold on web search The future of Google LLC is up in the air amid a high-stakes courtroom battle that kicked off today, beginning three weeks of hearings to determine how it's punished for using its revolutionary search engine to establish an illegal monopoly. The proceedings, known as a "remedy hearing", are likely to hear from a parade of high-profile witnesses, including Google Chief Executive Sundar Pichai. "This is a moment in time, we're at an inflection point," said Justice Department attorney David Dahlquist. "Will we abandon the search market and surrender them to control of the monopolists or will we let competition prevail and give choice to future generations?" The U.S. Department of Justice is asking a federal judge to implement a radical solution that would see Google banned from striking multibillion dollar deals with technology companies like Apple Inc. that protect its search engine from competition. It's also asking that Google be forced to share valuable user data with rival search companies and sell its popular web browser Chrome. In his opening statement, Google's attorney John Schmidtlein argued for a lesser punishment, saying that the government's heavy-handed proposals will simply reward lesser rivals with inferior search products, without increasing competition for consumers. "Google won its place in the market fair and square," Schmitlein insisted. Google's day of reckoning is fast approaching, almost four-and-a-half years after the DOJ first filed its landmark lawsuit against the company, accusing it of abusing its position as the gateway to the internet by stifling competition and innovation. The case ultimately went to trial in 2023, and last year U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled that Google had made anti-competitive deals to ensure Google Search was effectively the default portal for seeking digital information on personal computers, iPhones, Android smartphones and other popular devices. Google, which was founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin in a Silicon Valley garage back in 1998, has long since established itself as the world's number one search engine. It has expanded far beyond web search, becoming a powerhouse in data centers, smartphone software, web browsing, digital maps, online shopping, video, email and more. That's why the DOJ believes radical measures must be taken to break Google's illegal monopoly on search. "Google's illegal conduct has created an economic goliath, one that wreaks havoc over the marketplace to ensure that -- no matter what occurs -- Google always wins," the DOJ wrote in documents that outline its suggestions. "The American people are forced to accept the unbridled demands and shifting ideological preferences of an economic leviathan in return for a search engine the public may enjoy." In his opening statement, Dahlquist told Judge Mehta there will be a lot of testimony from the executives of leading artificial intelligence companies, such as OpenAI. While AI was barely mentioned during the original trial, he said the remedies must include provisions to ensure that Google's AI chatbot Gemini isn't used to strengthen the company's monopoly on search. According to Dahlquist, AI has the potential to transform how people search the internet for information, just as Google's original search engine did back in the late 1990s. "We believe that Google can and will attempt to circumvent the court's remedies if it is not included," Dahlquist said. "Generative AI is Google's next evolution to keep their vicious cycle spinning." Dahlquist's first witness was the AI expert Greg Durret, a professor of computer science based at the University of Texas, who told the judge that Google's domination of the search market has been a key enabler of its AI products. Schmidtlein responded in his opening remarks that there are plenty of rival AI companies that have seen enormous growth in recent years. They are doing "just fine", he insisted. But not all of Google's AI rivals agree. In a blog post published today, the AI search engine company Perplexity AI Inc. backed the DOJ's push to ban Google's multibillion deals to secure the default search engine status on PCs and smartphones. "The future of search is clear, and it isn't links for Google to sell traffic," Perplexity said. "It's AI that answers questions, completes tasks, and interacts with applications." Google has also hit back against the DOJ's proposals to force it to hand over online search data to rival companies and sell the Chrome browser, saying this will have a negative impact on the privacy and security of U.S. consumers. "The breadth and depth of the proposed remedies risks doing significant damage to a complex ecosystem," Google wrote in a blog post dated April 20. "Some of the proposed remedies would imperil browser developers and jeopardize the digital security of millions of consumers." The hearing is the climax of America's biggest antitrust case since the late 1990s, when rival tech firm Microsoft Corp. was sued by the DOJ for using its dominant operating system software Windows to crush its competitors. At the end of that years-long case, a federal judge ruled Microsoft had established an illegal monopoly and ordered it to be partially broken up, though some of those remedies were overturned by an appeals court. The two parties later reached a settlement, where Microsoft agreed to modify some of its business practices. Google has also said it's planning to appeal Mehta's original ruling, which branded its search engine business as an illegal monopoly. However, it cannot do this until after the remedy hearing. The proceedings are expected to close in late May, and Judge Mehta's ruling is expected to come before Labor Day.

Perplexity Says Breaking Up Google and Chrome Isn't the Solution | AIM Media House

The AI-enabled search engine startup was asked to testify in Google's antitrust case brought by the DOJ. Perplexity, the AI search platform, has announced that both the US Department of Justice and Google have asked it to provide testimony in the DOJ's ongoing antitrust lawsuit against Google. The case highlights how Google's search services are default-installed on devices through agreements with carriers and manufacturers, sidelining competitors. For instance, Google pays a substantial amount to Apple to ensure that Google is the default search provider on Apple devices. The DOJ is also proposing that Google sell its Chrome browser. This aims to end the online search monopoly, according to the judge's findings. The DOJ lawyers also deem Chrome to be a 'significant gateway' to Google's search services; therefore, it should remain a separate entity. This likely suggests that if Chrome were to become an independent entity, it could also include other search services as defaults. In a statement, Perplexity said that the best remedy would be to allow people to choose a search product for themselves, instead of breaking up Google by suggesting it sell Chrome. "Consumers deserve the best products, not just the ones that pay the most for placement. This is the only remedy that ensures consumer choice can determine the winners," said Perplexity. "And for OEMs and carriers: you shouldn't have to pick a side," added Perplexity. The company also advocates for a 'healthy ecosystem' where consumers can choose both Chrome and, say, Perplexity in the same space. CEO Aravind Srinivas took to LinkedIn to express his views on the matter. "Google should not be broken up. Chrome should remain within and continue to be run by Google," he said. He also mentioned that the company deserves a lot of credit for open-sourcing the Chromium browser engine, which powers Chrome, along with other browsers like Microsoft Edge and Perplexity's upcoming Comet. "OEMs feel threatened about any changes here even outside the defaults, because of the magnitude of revenue sharing offered to them by Google to preserve the status quo even when better alternatives are available," he added, while also indicating that Perplexity's AI assistant is superior to Google's Gemini. That said, Google also recently released a statement, responding to DOJ's findings. The company says that DOJ's proposals would make it hard for users to access Google services. "People use Google because they want to, not because they have to. DOJ's proposal would force browsers and phones to default to search services like Microsoft's Bing, making it harder for you to access Google," said Google. Regarding the separation of Chrome, the company stated that it would introduce cybersecurity and national security risks, as it would disconnect the browser from the company's technical infrastructure.

OpenAI says it would jump at the chance to buy Chrome from Google - SiliconANGLE

OpenAI says it would jump at the chance to buy Chrome from Google OpenAI's head of product Nick Turley has told a judge overseeing the remedy phase of Google LLC's antitrust trial that his company would be very interested in buying the Chrome browser if given a chance to do so. After Google was found guilty of running an illegal monopoly on search last year, the Department of Justice is now pushing for a number of remedies to be imposed on Google, with one of its suggestions being to force the company to sell Chrome. It would be a severe punishment for Google, and the presiding Judge Amit Mehta has already expressed skepticism over the proposal. Nonetheless, the DOJ insists that the browser is a key enabler of Google's anticompetitive conduct, and believes a forced sale would go a long way towards leveling the playing field. There should be plenty of takers too. When asked if his company would be interested in buying Chrome, Turley made it quite clear that it's interested. "Yes, we would, as would many other parties," Turley said, as reported by The Information. OpenAI has expressed an interest in creating its own Chromium-based browser to help it compete with Google in Search. It may even be working on some kind of product already, having hired former Google developers Ben Goodger and Darin Fisher, who helped design Chrome, in November. Chrome, with its four billion users globally giving it a 67% share of the browser market, would be a tempting target for many companies. In the case of OpenAI, it would mean access to a massive install base that has long been pushed to use Google's services, including its search engine, its email and its artificial intelligence products. If OpenAI were to own Chrome, it would be able to integrate ChatGPT with the entire browsing experience, Turley told the court. In addition, the company would benefit immensely from the invaluable user data amassed by Chrome, likely leading to the development of more AI agents that can automate browser operations. Still, if Google really is forced to sell Chrome, the browser would not necessarily be auctioned off to the highest bidder. There's also the possibility that it could be spun off as an independent company. Google has always insisted that Chrome wouldn't be able to survive alone, but it might be preferable to selling the browser to one of its rivals. Turley was also asked about a second remedy proposed by the DOJ, which involves forcing Google to share search data with its competitors. Responding, he said OpenAI had previously approached Google to propose a data sharing deal, only for the company to reject it out of hand. "We believe in having multiple partners, and in particular Google's API would enable us to provide a much better product to our users," OpenAI previously wrote in an email to Google. According to Turley, Google rejected the deal because it believes that any data sharing would likely harm its lead in the search business. He added that if Google were forced to license its search data, it would go some way towards restoring competition in the search industry and help his own company to "build a better product faster."

OpenAI Interested in Buying Google Chrome, Says ChatGPT Product Head | AIM Media House

OpenAI, the company behind the ChatGPT family of AI models, has revealed that it is interested in purchasing Google Chrome. Nick Turley, ChatGPT's head of product, reportedly testified to this during a hearing regarding Google's antitrust case brought by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) on Tuesday. The antitrust case against Google aims to dismantle the company's monopoly in the search engine ecosystem. The lawsuit is advocating against Google entering into agreements with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and carriers to pre-install their services. Furthermore, the DOJ also proposed that Google sell its Chrome browser, as it is deemed a huge gateway to its search products. Thus, if it remains a separate entity, it could create an opportunity to include other search providers as the default option. Perplexity, the AI search engine company, was also asked to testify. The company released a statement saying the best option is to allow people to choose a search product for themselves, instead of breaking up Google by suggesting it sell Chrome. "Consumers deserve the best products, not just the ones that pay the most for placement. This is the only remedy that ensures consumer choice can determine the winners," Perplexity said. "And for OEMs and carriers, you shouldn't have to pick a side." Regarding the separation of Chrome, Google stated that it would introduce cybersecurity and national security risks, as it would disconnect the browser from the company's technical infrastructure. "DOJ's proposal to split off Chrome and Android, which we built at great cost over many years and make available for free, would break those platforms, hurt businesses built on them, and undermine security," Google said. Furthermore, Turley also revealed that Google declined an offer from OpenAI concerning the use of Google's services in ChatGPT. OpenAI was reportedly "experiencing issues with its own search providers" and turned to Google for help.

Google faces historic antitrust trial as DOJ challenges AI search practices

A federal judge ruled Google violated antitrust laws in the digital ad market. A possible breakup of its ad business could be the remedy. Alphabet's Google GOOGL.O needs strong measures imposed on it to prevent it from using its artificial intelligence products to extend its dominance in online search, a U.S. Department of Justice attorney said as trial in the historic antitrust case began on Monday. The outcome of the trial could fundamentally reshape the internet by unseating Google as the go-to portal for information online. The DOJ has compared the lawsuit to its past efforts to break up AT&T, Microsoft and Standard Oil. "The time to tell Google and all other monopolists who are out there listening, and they are listening, that there are consequences when you break the antitrust laws," DOJ attorney David Dahlquist said during his opening statement. The DOJ and a broad coalition of state attorneys general seek to force Google to sell off its Chrome browser and take other measures to restore competition even as search evolves to overlap with generative AI products such as ChatGPT. "This court's remedy should be forward-looking and not ignore what is on the horizon," Dahlquist said. Witnesses from Perplexity AI and OpenAI will testify about how search and AI overlap and how Google's dominance affects their business, Dahlquist said. Google argues that its AI products are outside the scope of the case, which focused on search engines. Adopting the proposed remedies "would hold back American innovation at a critical juncture," Google executive Lee-Anne Mulholland said in a blog post on Sunday. The company plans to appeal the final ruling in the case. Antitrust enforcers have proposed far-reaching measures designed to quickly open the search market and give new competitors a leg up. Their proposals include ending exclusive agreements in which Google pays billions of dollars annually to Apple AAPL.O and other device vendors to make Google the default search engine on their tablets and smartphones. Google would also have to license search results to competitors, among other requirements. And it would be made to sell its Android mobile operating system if other remedies fail to restore competition. Google sees the proposals as extreme, and said the court should stick to limiting the terms of its default agreements. The $1.9 trillion tech company has been subsidizing browser makers such as Mozilla by paying to remain the default search engine. Cutting off that financial support could threaten their existence, Google says. And ending payments to device makers would raise the cost of smartphones, the company claims. Google plans to call witnesses from Mozilla, Verizon VZ.N and Apple, which launched a failed bid to intervene in the case. Few potential buyers of Chrome have the same incentive as Google to maintain the free open-source code that underpins it, and which others including Microsoft use as a basis for their own browsers, the company says. The trial comes on the heels of a win for the DOJ in a Virginia court on Thursday where a judge ruled in a separate antitrust case that Google maintains an illegal monopoly in advertising technology. Meta Platforms META.O is currently facing its own antitrust trial over the acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp.

OpenAI willing to acquire Google Chrome if antitrust ruling forces sale, executive says

OpenAI is reportedly developing a social media platform similar to X, featuring an internal prototype that integrates ChatGPT's image generation capabilities. OpenAI would be interested in buying Google's Chrome if antitrust enforcers are successful in forcing the Alphabet GOOGL.O unit to sell the popular web browser as part of a bid to restore competition in search, an OpenAI executive testified on Tuesday at Google's antitrust trial in Washington. ChatGPT head of product Nick Turley made the statement while testifying at trial in Washington where U.S. Department of Justice seeks to require Google to undertake far-reaching measures restore competition in online search. The judge overseeing the trial found last year that Google has a monopoly in online search and related advertising. Google has not offered Chrome for sale. The company plans to appeal the ruling that it holds a monopoly. The beginning of the high-stakes trial provided a glimpse into the generative AI race, where Big Tech companies and startups are vying to build up their apps and gain users. Prosecutors raised concerns in opening statements on Monday that Google's search monopoly could give it advantages in AI, and that its AI products are another way to lead users to its search engine. Google has pointed to competition among companies offering generative AI products, such as Meta Platforms META.O and Microsoft MSFT.O. Turley wrote last year that ChatGPT was leading in the consumer chatbot market and did not see Google as its biggest competitor, according to an internal OpenAI document Google's lawyer showed at trial. He testified that the document was meant to inspire OpenAI employees and that the company would still benefit from distribution partnerships. 'Better product' Turley, a witness for the government, testified earlier in the day that Google shot down a bid by OpenAI to use its search technology within ChatGPT. OpenAI had reached out to Google after experiencing issues with its own search provider, Turley said, without naming the provider. ChatGPT uses technology from Microsoft's search engine, Bing. "We believe having multiple partners, and in particular Google's API, would enable us to provide a better product to users," OpenAI told Google, according to an email shown at trial. OpenAI first reached out in July, and Google declined the request in August, saying it would involve too many competitors, according to the email. "We have no partnership with Google today," Turley said. The DOJ's proposal to make Google share search data with competitors as one means of restoring competition would help accelerate efforts to improve ChatGPT, Turley said. Search is a critical part of ChatGPT to provide answers to user queries that are up to date and factual, Turley said. ChatGPT is years away from its goal of being able to use its own search technology to answer 80% of queries, he added. Ending exclusive deals In August, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta found that Google protected its search monopoly through exclusive agreements with Samsung Electronics 005930.KS and others to have its search engine installed as the default on new devices. Google had contemplated deals with Android phone makers such as Samsung that would provide exclusivity for not only its search app, but also for its Gemini AI app and Chrome browser, according to a document shown at trial. Instead of entering more exclusive agreements, however, Google loosened its most recent deals with device makers Samsung and Motorola and wireless carriers AT&T and Verizon, allowing them to load rival search offerings, other documents showed. The non-exclusive agreements mirror what Google has said should be the remedy to address Mehta's ruling. The DOJ wants the judge to go farther, banning Google from making lucrative payments in exchange for installation of its search app. Google sent letters as recently as last week reiterating that its agreements did not prohibit the companies from installing other AI products on new devices, Google executive Peter Fitzgerald testified on Tuesday.

OpenAI Wants to Buy Google Chrome -- and That's a Terrible Idea

An OpenAI executive has testified that, if Google is forced to sell its Chrome browser, it would be the first in line to buy. Google is in the midst of a monopoly investigation regarding its enormous hold on tech -- but selling Google Chrome to OpenAI would be even worse. Why Would Google Have to Sell Chrome? In short, Google's antitrust trial is moving toward the reparations and punishment phase, and there is a strong belief that Google Chrome is on the table. Now, the Department of Justice hasn't made any punishment level clear, but being forced to sell Chrome would definitely be one of the harshest. It's not out of the question, given Google's stranglehold on the global browser market and internet search, both of which are under investigation. Indeed, the DOJ believes that Chrome is core to Google's dominance, which is why its name keeps appearing alongside words like "monopoly" and "anticompetitiveness." OpenAI Wants to Buy Google Chrome OpenAI is currently partnered with Microsoft. While Microsoft's Bing search is decent, it's not a patch on Google Search. And that's what OpenAI ultimately wants: better real-world data for its upcoming AI models, and better results for its integrated web search features. According to Ars Technica, Nick Turley, head of product for ChatGPT at OpenAI, said, "We believe having multiple partners, and in particular Google's API, would enable us to provide a better product to users." So while the outcome of the DOJ's investigation isn't complete, there is likely to be some reshuffling of Google's core products. OpenAI Buying Chrome Would be Dreadful -- and Doesn't Make Sense Given Chrome's 4 billion users, it's no wonder OpenAI is deeply interested in buying the browser. It's an unprecedented number of preinstalls, just waiting for someone to tap into that data. Well, more than Google and its advertising partners already tap into that data. However, the DOJ breaking up Google, only to sell Chrome to another enormous tech company deeply invested in data gathering and harvesting, doesn't make sense. For users, it's out of the frying pan and into the AI data collection fryer; there's no win here. Why go to such lengths to break up one monopoly, only to hand the impetus to a company with similar focus and ethics? It would almost certainly have a direct negative impact on Chromium, the open-source project underpinning not just Google Chrome, but Microsoft Edge, Opera, Brave, Vivaldi, Arc, and many more. Does Chromium maintain its independence? And moreover, how much do people really want complete AI-integration throughout their browsing experience? Google's AI Overviews directly contribute to numerous websites losing web traffic, with many popular sites losing writers and curtailing content. Who really wants a web where the only content is written by AI? Furthermore, I've tried using ChatGPT search instead of Google. It wasn't fun. Turley also said that if OpenAI were to buy Google Chrome, the company would "have the ability to introduce users into what an AI-first experience looks like." What that AI-first experience looks like is unknown, but if it's anything like Google's AI Overviews, the future of the internet may be bleaker than we realize.

Google Could Use AI to Extend Search Monopoly, DOJ Says as Trial Begins

Google argues that its AI products are outside the scope of the case Alphabet's Google needs strong measures imposed on it to prevent it from using its artificial intelligence products to extend its dominance in online search, a U.S. Department of Justice attorney said as a trial in the historic antitrust case began on Monday. The outcome of the case could fundamentally reshape the internet by unseating Google as the go-to portal for information online. The Justice Department is seeking an order that would require Google to sell its Chrome browser and take other measures to end what a judge found was its monopoly in online search. Prosecutors have compared the lawsuit to past cases that resulted in the break up of AT&T and Standard Oil. Now is the "time to tell Google and all other monopolists who are out there listening, and they are listening, that there are consequences when you break the antitrust laws," DOJ attorney David Dahlquist said during his opening statement. The DOJ and a broad coalition of state attorneys general are pressing for remedies they believe will restore competition even as search evolves to overlap with generative AI products such as ChatGPT. "This court's remedy should be forward-looking and not ignore what is on the horizon," Dahlquist said. Google's search monopoly helps improve its AI products, which are also a way to lead users to its search engine, he said. Google has agreed to pay Samsung monthly to install Google's Gemini AI app on devices such as smartphones, a deal that can be extended into 2028, according to documents shown at trial. The financial terms were not disclosed, but Dahlquist characterized the monthly amount as an "enormous sum." US District Judge Amit Mehta previously ruled that Google's exclusive agreements with device makers to be the default search engine helped maintain its monopoly. Nick Turley, OpenAI's product head for rival AI app ChatGPT, was expected to take the stand on Tuesday. Google's lawyer, John Schmidtlein, said in his opening statement that the DOJ's proposals amount to "a wishlist for competitors looking to get the benefits of Google's extraordinary innovations." AI competitors "would like handouts as well even though they are competing just fine," he said. Google argues that its AI products are outside the scope of the case, which focused on search engines. Adopting the proposed remedies "would hold back American innovation at a critical juncture," Google executive Lee-Anne Mulholland said in a blog post on Sunday. The company has said it will appeal once a final judgment is entered. Exclusive Agreements Antitrust enforcers have proposed far-reaching measures designed to quickly open the search market and give new competitors a leg up. Their proposals include ending Google's exclusive agreements with tablet and smartphone makers like Apple to make Google the default search engine on their devices. Google would also have to license search results to competitors, among other requirements. The DOJ has proposed that, if other remedies fail to restore competition, Google would be forced to sell its Android mobile operating system. Google said the court should stick to making its default agreements non-exclusive. Ending Google's payments to device makers and browser developers would raise the cost of smartphones and jeopardize the existence of companies like Mozilla, which rely on the revenue to operate, Google claims. Google plans to call witnesses from Mozilla, Verizon and Apple, which launched a failed bid to intervene in the case. Non-Partisan The case is part of an antitrust crackdown on Big Tech started during the first Trump administration that shows no signs of slowing, despite overtures tech companies and their executives have made to the White House. Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater and other DOJ antitrust officials were in the courtroom to show that the case, started under Trump and carried forward under former President Joe Biden, proposes "nonpartisan" remedies and has "the full support of the DOJ both past and present," Dahlquist said. Slater celebrated a win in another antitrust case against Google on Thursday over advertising technology. The case was filed during Biden's term. Meta Platforms is facing its own antitrust trial over the acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp. © Thomson Reuters 2025

OpenAI Interested in Buying Google Chrome, Executive Says at Trial

Google's search monopoly could give it advantages in AI, said prosecutors OpenAI would be interested in buying Google's Chrome if antitrust enforcers are successful in forcing the Alphabet unit to sell the popular web browser as part of a bid to restore competition in search, an OpenAI executive testified on Tuesday at Google's antitrust trial in Washington. ChatGPT head of product Nick Turley made the statement while testifying at trial in Washington where US Department of Justice seeks to require Google to undertake far-reaching measures restore competition in online search. The judge overseeing the trial found last year that Google has a monopoly in online search and related advertising. Google has not offered Chrome for sale. The company plans to appeal the ruling that it holds a monopoly. The beginning of the high-stakes trial provided a glimpse into the generative AI race, where Big Tech companies and startups are vying to build up their apps and gain users. Prosecutors raised concerns in opening statements on Monday that Google's search monopoly could give it advantages in AI, and that its AI products are another way to lead users to its search engine. Google has pointed to competition among companies offering generative AI products, such as Meta Platforms and Microsoft. Turley wrote last year that ChatGPT was leading in the consumer chatbot market and did not see Google as its biggest competitor, according to an internal OpenAI document Google's lawyer showed at trial. He testified that the document was meant to inspire OpenAI employees and that the company would still benefit from distribution partnerships. 'Better Product' Turley, a witness for the government, testified earlier in the day that Google shot down a bid by OpenAI to use its search technology within ChatGPT. OpenAI had reached out to Google after experiencing issues with its own search provider, Turley said, without naming the provider. ChatGPT uses technology from Microsoft's search engine, Bing. "We believe having multiple partners, and in particular Google's API, would enable us to provide a better product to users," OpenAI told Google, according to an email shown at trial. OpenAI first reached out in July, and Google declined the request in August, saying it would involve too many competitors, according to the email. "We have no partnership with Google today," Turley said. The DOJ's proposal to make Google share search data with competitors as one means of restoring competition would help accelerate efforts to improve ChatGPT, Turley said. Search is a critical part of ChatGPT to provide answers to user queries that are up to date and factual, Turley said. ChatGPT is years away from its goal of being able to use its own search technology to answer 80 percent of queries, he added. Ending Exclusive Deals In August, US District Judge Amit Mehta found that Google protected its search monopoly through exclusive agreements with Samsung Electronics and others to have its search engine installed as the default on new devices. Google had contemplated deals with Android phone makers such as Samsung that would provide exclusivity for not only its search app, but also for its Gemini AI app and Chrome browser, according to a document shown at trial. Instead of entering more exclusive agreements, however, Google loosened its most recent deals with device makers Samsung and Motorola and wireless carriers AT&T and Verizon, allowing them to load rival search offerings, other documents showed. The non-exclusive agreements mirror what Google has said should be the remedy to address Mehta's ruling. The DOJ wants the judge to go farther, banning Google from making lucrative payments in exchange for installation of its search app. Google sent letters as recently as last week reiterating that its agreements did not prohibit the companies from installing other AI products on new devices, Google executive Peter Fitzgerald testified on Tuesday. © Thomson Reuters 2025

US urges curb of Google's search dominance as AI looms

US government lawyers urged a judge to force Google to spin off Chrome, warning AI could deepen its search monopoly. This follows rulings that Google unlawfully dominated both search and ad tech. Google disputes the claims, calling the proposals extreme and pledging to appeal. The courtroom defeats have the potential to leave Google split up and its influence curbed.US government attorneys urged a federal judge Monday to make Google spin off its Chrome browser, arguing artificial intelligence is poised to ramp up the tech giant's online search dominance. The Department of Justice (DOJ) made its pitch at a hearing before District Judge Amit Mehta, who is considering "remedies" after making a landmark decision last year that Google maintained an illegal monopoly in online search. "Nothing less than the future of the internet is at stake here," Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater said prior to the start of the hearing in Washington. "If Google's conduct is not remedied, it will control much of the internet for the next decade and not just in internet search, but in new technologies like artificial intelligence." Google is among the tech companies investing heavily to be among the leader in AI, and is weaving the technology into search and other online offerings. Google countered in the case that the United States has gone way beyond the scope of the suit by recommending a spinoff of its widely used Chrome, and holding open the option to force a sale of its Android mobile operating system. The legal case focused on Google's agreements with partners such as Apple and Samsung to distribute its search tools, noted Google president of global affairs Kent Walker. "The DOJ chose to push a radical interventionist agenda that would harm Americans and America's global technology leadership," Walker wrote in a blog post. "The DOJ's wildly overbroad proposal goes miles beyond the Court's decision." The DOJ case against Google regarding its dominance in internet search was filed in 2020. Judge Mehta ruled against Google in August 2024. Ad tech under fire Google's battle to protect Chrome renewed just days after a different US judge ruled this month that it wielded monopoly power in the online ad technology market, in a legal blow that could rattle the tech giant's revenue engine. The federal government and more than a dozen US states filed the antitrust suit against Alphabet-owned Google, accusing it of acting illegally to dominate three sectors of digital advertising -- publisher ad servers, advertiser tools, and ad exchanges. The vast majority of websites use Google ad software products that, combined, leave no way for publishers to escape Google's advertising technology, the plaintiffs alleged. District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema agreed with most of that reasoning, ruling that Google built an illegal monopoly over ad software and tools used by publishers, but partially dismissed the argument related to tools used by advertisers. "Google has wilfully engaged in a series of anticompetitive acts to acquire and maintain monopoly power in the publisher ad server and ad exchange markets for open-web display advertising," Brinkema said in her ruling. The judge concluded that Google further entrenched its monopoly power with anticompetitive customer policies and by eliminating desirable product features. Online advertising is the driving engine of Google's fortune and pays for widely used online services like Maps, Gmail, and search offered free. Money pouring into Google's coffers also allows the Silicon Valley company to spend billions of dollars on its artificial intelligence efforts. Combined, the courtroom defeats have the potential to leave Google split up and its influence curbed. Google said it is appealing both rulings.

'Don't break Google': Perplexity AI CEO offers alternative ahead of antitrust testimony

Perplexity AI and OpenAI have been asked to testify in the historic antitrust case against Google over its search monopoly. Witnesses from both AI companies will tell a Washington judge how Google's monopoly on web search affects their business. The proceedings can end with the Chrome browser being carved out of Google, and the internet major forced to license precious user data to competitors. Ahead of the testimony, however, Perplexity AI's cofounder and CEO, Aravind Srinivas, said that Google should not be broken up. Chrome became the browser of choice for millions of users due to execution quality, he said. "Chrome has rightly earned its dominant position in the market because it has been (emphasis on has-been) a superior product." Srinivas wrote in a separate social media post that nobody else can run a browser at that scale of Chrome without a hit on quality, nor has the business model to serve that many users profitably by keeping the browser free. The hearing seeks to end Google's dominance over the internet. Allowing consumers to choose can remedy this, instead of breaking up the company, the Perplexity AI CEO said. Google has been charged with paying enormous amounts of money to Samsung to preload Gemini as the default AI app on its devices. One of the considerations the justice department has proposed is stopping Google from paying for exclusive positions on other services and devices. "To be clear, the risk for America isn't that Google is too dominant. It's when any company uses their dominance to limit consumer choice, especially when better options already exist," he wrote in the blog. In the social media post, Srinivas suggested offering consumers the choice to pick their defaults on Android "without feeling the risk of a loss in revenue". The hearing, which started on April 21, will continue for three weeks. Judgement in the matter is likely to be pronounced by US district judge Amit Mehta in August later this year. Also Read: AI can be 'end of disease' within next decade, says Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis

Google contemplated exclusive Gemini AI deals with Android makers

At a US antitrust trial, it was revealed that Google considered exclusive deals with Android makers like Samsung for its Gemini AI app, Chrome, and search. Prosecutors argue such deals reinforce Google's search monopoly and hinder AI competition. The Justice Department seeks remedies, including possibly forcing Google to sell Chrome.Alphabet's Google contemplated deals with Android phone makers such as Samsung last year that would provide exclusivity for not only its search app, but also for its Gemini AI app and Chrome browser, according to a document shown at the second day of an antitrust trial. The US Department of Justice and a broad coalition of state attorneys general are seeking an order from a judge in Washington that would require Google to sell its Chrome browser and take other measures. They hope to end what the judge found was Google's monopoly in online search and related advertising. In that ruling, US District Judge Amit Mehta found that Google protected its search monopoly through exclusive agreements with Samsung Electronics and others to have its search engine installed as the default on new devices. Prosecutors raised concerns in opening statements on Monday that Google's search monopoly could give it advantages in AI, and that its AI products are another way to lead users to its search engine. OpenAI's ChatGPT head of product Nick Turley is expected to take the stand on Tuesday and testify about how Google's exclusive agreements make it harder to distribute AI products such as ChatGPT. Google has said the case is not about AI, and that it faces robust competition from companies including Meta Platforms.

OpenAI would buy Google's Chrome, executive testifies at trial

ChatGPT head of product Nick Turley made the statement while testifying at trial in Washington where U.S. Department of Justice seeks to require Google to undertake far-reaching measures restore competition in online search.OpenAI would be interested in buying Google's Chrome if antitrust enforcers are successful in forcing the Alphabet unit to sell the popular web browser as part of a bid to restore competition in search, an OpenAI executive testified on Tuesday at Google's antitrust trial in Washington. ChatGPT head of product Nick Turley made the statement while testifying at trial in Washington where U.S. Department of Justice seeks to require Google to undertake far-reaching measures restore competition in online search. The judge overseeing the trial found last year that Google has a monopoly in online search and related advertising. Google has not offered Chrome for sale. The company plans to appeal the ruling that it holds a monopoly. The beginning of the high-stakes trial provided a glimpse into the generative AI race, where Big Tech companies and startups are vying to build up their apps and gain users. Prosecutors raised concerns in opening statements on Monday that Google's search monopoly could give it advantages in AI, and that its AI products are another way to lead users to its search engine. Google has pointed to competition among companies offering generative AI products, such as Meta Platforms and Microsoft. Turley wrote last year that ChatGPT was leading in the consumer chatbot market and did not see Google as its biggest competitor, according to an internal OpenAI document Google's lawyer showed at trial. He testified that the document was meant to inspire OpenAI employees and that the company would still benefit from distribution partnerships. Better product Turley, a witness for the government, testified earlier in the day that Google shot down a bid by OpenAI to use its search technology within ChatGPT. OpenAI had reached out to Google after experiencing issues with its own search provider, Turley said, without naming the provider. ChatGPT uses technology from Microsoft's search engine, Bing. "We believe having multiple partners, and in particular Google's API, would enable us to provide a better product to users," OpenAI told Google, according to an email shown at trial. OpenAI first reached out in July, and Google declined the request in August, saying it would involve too many competitors, according to the email. "We have no partnership with Google today," Turley said. The DOJ's proposal to make Google share search data with competitors as one means of restoring competition would help accelerate efforts to improve ChatGPT, Turley said. Search is a critical part of ChatGPT to provide answers to user queries that are up to date and factual, Turley said. ChatGPT is years away from its goal of being able to use its own search technology to answer 80% of queries, he added. Ending exclusive deals In August, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta found that Google protected its search monopoly through exclusive agreements with Samsung Electronics and others to have its search engine installed as the default on new devices. Google had contemplated deals with Android phone makers such as Samsung that would provide exclusivity for not only its search app, but also for its Gemini AI app and Chrome browser, according to a document shown at trial. Instead of entering more exclusive agreements, however, Google loosened its most recent deals with device makers Samsung and Motorola and wireless carriers AT&T and Verizon, allowing them to load rival search offerings, other documents showed. The non-exclusive agreements mirror what Google has said should be the remedy to address Mehta's ruling. The DOJ wants the judge to go farther, banning Google from making lucrative payments in exchange for installation of its search app. Google sent letters as recently as last week reiterating that its agreements did not prohibit the companies from installing other AI products on new devices, Google executive Peter Fitzgerald testified on Tuesday.

Google could use AI to extend search monopoly, DOJ says as trial begins

Alphabet's Google needs strong measures imposed on it to prevent it from using its artificial intelligence products to extend its dominance in online search, a U.S. Department of Justice attorney said as a trial in the historic antitrust case began on Monday. The outcome of the case could fundamentally reshape the internet by unseating Google as the go-to portal for information online. The Justice Department is seeking an order that would require Google to sell its Chrome browser and take other measures to end what a judge found was its monopoly in online search. Prosecutors have compared the lawsuit to past cases that resulted in the breakup of AT&T and Standard Oil.

OpenAI Eyes Chrome Takeover: Sam Altman Ready To Pounce If Google Forced To Sell The Web Browser, Executive Reveals - Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG), Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL)

On Tuesday, OpenAI's behind-the-scenes efforts to improve ChatGPT's search capabilities have come to light in a high-profile antitrust trial targeting Alphabet Inc. GOOG GOOGL-owned Google's dominance in online search. What Happened: During testimony at the Department of Justice's antitrust trial against Google in Washington, OpenAI executive Nick Turley revealed that the company had attempted to partner with Google to enhance ChatGPT's search function, reported Reuters. The request came after Sam Altman-led OpenAI faced performance issues with its current search provider. While Turley did not name the provider, ChatGPT relies on Microsoft Corporation's MSFT Bing search engine for its search functionality. However, Google declined the request, citing the involvement of too many competitors, as per the email shown at trial. "We have no partnership with Google today," Turley said on the stand. He added that ChatGPT is still several years from reaching its goal of using its own search technology to handle 80% of user queries, the report noted. Turley also testified that OpenAI would be interested in buying Google's Chrome browser -- if antitrust enforcers were to force Alphabet to divest the product as part of a remedy to restore competition in search. See Also: Ford Recalls Nearly 150,000 Vehicles Over Brake And Powertrain Issues: NHTSA Why It's Important: The trial stems from the DOJ's claim that Google maintains its monopoly through exclusive default search deals. As of October 2024, Google Chrome held the largest share of the U.S. browser market at over 54%, with Apple's Safari coming in second at 31%, according to Statista. The DOJ's proposed remedies require Google to sell its Chrome web browser and end default search engine deals with companies such as Apple Inc. AAPL. The ongoing trial will decide on these measures, with a final decision anticipated in August. Previously, it was reported that in a meeting with government officials, Google representatives voiced serious concerns over the proposed remedies, warning they could drastically impact the company's operations. Price Action: Alphabet Inc. Class A shares closed Tuesday at $151.47, up 2.57%, and climbed another 2.18% in after-hours trading to $154.77. Class C shares finished at $153.90, rising 2.70%, with an additional after-hours gain of 2.05% to $157.05, according to Benzinga Pro data. According to Benzinga Edge Stock Rankings, the company currently has a growth score of 64.44%. Click here to see how it stacks up against other companies in the sector. Photo Courtesy: Hadrian On Shutterstock.com Read Next: Charlie Munger Once Said Warren Buffett Is A 'Learning Machine' And That's What Lies Beneath Berkshire Hathaway's Success From One Decade To Another Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. AAPLApple Inc$205.006.13%Stock Score Locked: Want to See it? Benzinga Rankings give you vital metrics on any stock - anytime. Reveal Full ScoreEdge RankingsMomentum68.17Growth45.08Quality84.49Value8.03Price TrendShortMediumLongOverviewGOOGAlphabet Inc$157.054.80%GOOGLAlphabet Inc$154.774.81%MSFTMicrosoft Corp$373.103.89%Got Questions? AskWhich tech companies may benefit from Google's breakup?How could OpenAI capitalize on Chrome's divestiture?What investments are ideal if Google sells Chrome?Which search engine providers could gain market share?How will Apple react if Google loses search deals?Are there emerging browsers set to disrupt the market?How might advertising companies adapt to changes in search?What opportunities exist in AI-driven search technologies?Which ETFs target companies affected by Google's antitrust case?Could Microsoft gain from OpenAI's enhanced search?Powered ByMarket News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

DOJ Warns Google Could Use AI Tools to Extend Search Monopoly As Antitrust Remedies Trial Begins | PYMNTS.com

As hearings got underway Monday in the remedies phase of the Justice Department's successful antitrust lawsuit against Google over its dominance of online search, DOJ lawyer David Dahlquist told the court in opening arguments that strong measures are needed to make sure Google cannot leverage its artificial intelligence products to further extend its search-engine monopoly. "This court's remedy should be forward-looking and not ignore what is on the horizon," Dahlquist said, according to reports from inside the courtroom. "The time to tell Google and all other monopolists who are out there listening, and they are listening, that there are consequences when you break the antitrust laws." U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled in August that Google illegally used its market power to crush search-engine competitors and maintain its monopoly. He is now considering proposals from each side as to appropriate remedies to restore competition to the search market. DOJ, which was joined in bringing the case a bipartisan group of state attorneys general, has proposed forcing Google to divest its Chrome browser and barring it from paying mobile phone makers to make Google the default search-engine on their devices. If that fails to restore competition within five years, the government further urges the court, Google should also be made to sell its Android mobile operating system. In his own opening statement, Google attorney John Schmidtlein called those proposed remedies "extreme" and "fundamentally flawed," according to the reports. Read more: Google to Appeal Partial Ruling in DOJ Antitrust Case "Google won its place in the market fair and square," Schmidtlein said, according to the Washington Post, adding that the government's proposals "will reward competitors with advantages they never would have earned in a market where Google competed." Google vowed last year to appeal Judge Mehta's ruling once the remedies phase is finished and proposed far more modest steps, such as providing browser makers with more flexibility in selecting a search engine to incorporate and allowing Android device makers to pre-load more search engines on phones and tablets. Google share of the search market has fallen in recent years, from nearly 90% in 2020 to closer to 80% today, as AI-powered competitors such as OpenAI's SearchGPT and Perplexity AI, both of which are expected to testify in the case. However, Google has also become a major player in so-called retrieval augmented search (RAG), which combines a large language AI model with traditional search technology. Its Google Overviews summaries now appear at the top of its search results pages. DOJ and the states are concerned that Google's leading position in AI could allow it to once against crowd out potential competitors in AI-powered search. "I think ChatGPT is doing just fine without any of the remedies in the case," Schmidtlein answered.

OpenAI Executive Says His Company and Many Others Would Buy Chrome Browser | PYMNTS.com

Testifying during a trial that will determine remedies for Google's dominance of the search market, as required by a judge's ruling last year, OpenAI's Head of Product, ChatGPT Nick Turley said OpenAI and "many other parties" would try to buy Chrome if it were available, Bloomberg reported Tuesday. ChatGPT can be downloaded as an extension for the Chrome browser, but it would be a better product if Chrome were more deeply integrated into OpenAI, Turley said, according to the report. In that case, Turley said, OpenAI would "have the ability to introduce users into what an AI-first experience looks like." Forcing Google to sell its Chrome browser is one of the remedies proposed by the Justice Department that are now being considered in the current stage of the antitrust trial. Google argued that this remedy and others proposed by the Justice Department would degrade the products consumers use every day. The company has suggested instead that consumers be allowed to select their preferred browser and that Google then be able to split revenue with competitors. Immediately after the antitrust ruling announced in August, Google vowed that it would appeal the verdict, with Kent Walker, global affairs president at Google, telling PYMNTS that the decision "recognizes that Google offers the best search engine but concludes that we shouldn't be allowed to make it easily available." OpenAI unveiled its latest AI models last week, saying that the new o3 and o4-mini reasoning models are the "smartest" it has released to date and represent a "step change" in ChatGPT's capabilities. For one thing, the company said, these models represent a big step toward most robust agentic AI systems that can independently execute tasks on behalf of users.

Antitrust Trial Reveals Google Rejected OpenAI Partnership | PYMNTS.com

That information came to light Tuesday (April 22) during testimony by Nick Turley, OpenAI's head of product for ChatGPT, during the remedy phase of the Department of Justice (DOJ) antitrust trial against Google in Washington. According to Reuters, Turley told the court that OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT, was experiencing issues with its existing search provider. According to reports by Reuters and Yahoo, that's Microsoft Bing. Turley stated that ChatGPT was years away from being able to answer most queries using its own search technology, reports said. OpenAI reportedly contacted Google about an application programming interface (API) integration that would improve ChatGPT's ability to deliver accurate and up-to-date answers. Google declined the request in August, Turley said. An email from Google presented in court revealed the reason was that an integration would involve too many competitors, according to reports. The suit by the DOJ and a coalition of state attorneys general could lead to a possible breakup of Google's core businesses. According to reports, prosecutors said in opening statements Monday that a search monopoly could give the company an unfair advantages in artificial intelligence (AI), and that its AI products would funnel users to its search engine. U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled in August that Google illegally maintained a monopoly in online search through exclusive agreements with Samsung to make Google the default search engine. Reports say that evidence presented in court showed Google had considered exclusive deals with Android phone manufacturers for not only its search app, but also its Gemini AI app and Chrome browser. Ultimately, Google shifted to less restrictive agreements, allowing device makers and carriers to install other search and AI offerings. The Big Tech firm has argued that this non-exclusive stance sufficiently addresses Mehta's ruling. However, reports say, the DOJ is pushing for an outright ban on Google making lucrative payments in exchange for installation of its search app. According to reports, Google executive Peter Fitzgerald testified on Tuesday that its agreements do not prohibit mobile device companies from installing other AI products on new devices. A Yahoo report stated that OpenAI is interested in acquiring Chrome if parent company Alphabet is ordered to sell the web browser. Google has not offered Chrome for sale. Google, which is likely to appeal a breakup order, maintains it already has robust competition -- specifically naming Meta Platforms and Microsoft, according to reports.

Perplexity AI: Google Shouldn't Be Broken Up in Case vs. US DOJ

Perplexity AI's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Aravind Srinivas remarked that Google should not be broken up, while referring to the United States' (US) Department of Justice's (DOJ) push for Chrome to be divested from Google. However, Srinivas condemned Google's practice of enabling its own bundled apps and search engine as default, thereby limiting users' choices. Notably, Perplexity is launching its own browser, Comet, which is built on Google's open-source Chromium web browser project. Praising Google's Chrome, Srinivas said, "We don't believe anyone else can run a browser at that scale without a hit on quality." Google is currently being investigated by the US' DOJ for anti-competitive practices. This is not the first time that the tech giant is facing anti-trust investigations. In 2024, Google was found guilty of illegally establishing its dominance by agreeing contracts with Apple and Samsung to have Google as the default search engine on their smartphones and web browsers. The 2024 anti-trust case against Google was touted as "the biggest tech monopoly trial" in the last 25 years. The last time such a huge anti-trust was levied was against Microsoft in 2001 for its restrictive contract terms that limited the choices for personal computer manufacturers. Perplexity AI said in its press release that the value that other platforms have created on Google's open-source systems like Android and Chromium far exceeds these systems' own value. For example, Microsoft's Edge browser: which is built on Chromium. However, Perplexity also pointed at the double-edged contractural terms with which Google leaves manufacturers and users with next to no choices. "The operating system (Android) is open-source, yet Google's rules and revenue agreements layered on top are what made Google a monopoly," the company's press release claimed. Perplexity added that the preloaded Google apps limit alternatives for users, while pointing out that many of Google's apps are "no longer the best at what they do." "Google knows this. So they've protected the monopoly power of an inferior product by hiding better ones from their own users-and forcing OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) and carrier partners to sandbag their own customers," Perplexity remarks in its press release. Google has three options in front of it: to either sell off the Chrome browser, license its data to other companies, or separate Android use from the requirements to include all Google apps along with eliminating revenue penalties for offering choices. However, Srinivas says that the right remedy is to offer consumers the "choice to pick their defaults on Android." "This solution is the simplest. Let people choose. Let phone makers and carriers offer their customers what they want-choice-without fearing financial penalties or access restrictions," read the press release. Google dominates the search engine space. It drives nearly 90% of the traffic. It has already been found guilty of illegally establishing dominance through making its apps default. The current DOJ investigation into Google is going to be an important shift in how the tech giant frames its future policy. This comes at a moment when preferences for searching information on the internet are changing. Generative AI models like ChatGPT and Perplexity already have the ability to scrape the web to give a comprehensive answer.And notably just around two months ago, Perplexity AI announced its own web browser, Comet. Therefore, Srinivas' endorsement of Google's open-source Chromium- on which Comet is being built- needs to be taken with a pinch of caution, especially at a moment when AI-based browsers are trying to replace traditional web browsers.

OpenAI Considers Buying Chrome Amid Google Antitrust Fight

ChatGPT's Head of Product, Nick Turley, told a Washington court that OpenAI would consider buying Google's Chrome browser if regulators forced to sell it, according to a Bloomberg report. Turley said owning Chrome could help OpenAI build a more AI-first browser experience, designed to work directly with tools like ChatGPT. He also shared that OpenAI had reached out to Google in July 2024, requesting access to its search Application Programming Interface (API) to improve ChatGPT's real-time answers. Google declined a month later, saying the request would involve too many competitors. "We have no partnership with Google today," Turley said. OpenAI seeks to reduce its reliance on Google's search tools. Right now, it depends on a company it also competes with. Chrome could give OpenAI more control over how people use ChatGPT, without having to go through Google first. OpenAI has also explored building its own browser from the ground up. A few months ago, it hired Ben Goodger and Darin Fisher, two former Google engineers who helped create the Chrome browser. That move shows OpenAI is serious about making a browser designed around its AI tools. Turley's testimony pointed to a bigger problem: AI companies like OpenAI can't grow easily without access to tools like search engines and browsers. Google controls both the data and the way people access that data. That puts companies like OpenAI at a disadvantage. Control over browsers, search engines, and user data gives platform giants like Google a major edge. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) sued Google in 2020, alleging the company made special deals with phone makers, browser developers, and telecom providers to set Google Search as the default option on most devices. That gave Google a big head start -- users saw its search engine the moment they turned on their phones or computers. Google reportedly spent $26.3 billion to secure default search engine status across browsers and devices, including Safari, Firefox, and Android phones. Consequently, the Justice Department wants Google to sell its Chrome browser. It also wants the company to stop paying for default placement. In addition, Google would have to share search results, ad feeds, and ranking data with its competitors. It also wants to bar Google from giving preference to its own search services on Android, YouTube, and its Gemini AI platform. "This is the time for the court to tell Google and all other monopolists who are out there listening... that there are consequences when you break the antitrust laws," said DOJ attorney David Dahlquist. The DOJ described Chrome as a critical gateway to Google Search, saying the browser reinforces Google's monopoly by steering users to its search engine and collecting large amounts of user data. Under the proposed judgment, Google would be banned from reacquiring search-related assets for at least five years. Google pushed back against the DOJ's proposal and called it "wildly overbroad." The company's argument was around how breaking up its business would hurt users by making devices less secure, increasing phone costs, and slowing down new features. It warned that selling Chrome or Android could disrupt everyday apps and services that millions of people rely on. John Schmidtlein, Google's lead lawyer, told the court that the DOJ's plan was less about restoring competition and more about giving Google's rivals an easy advantage. He described the proposal as "a wish list for competitors looking to get the benefits of Google's extraordinary innovations and trade secrets that we've spent decades developing." Google also defended its deals with companies like Apple and Samsung, saying they were no different from supermarket brands paying for better shelf space. The company added that users aren't locked in, they can change their default search engine anytime, and competitors like Bing and DuckDuckGo are still just a few clicks away. "Changing your search engine in Safari is trivial," it said. But Judge Amit Mehta didn't agree. He said Google's contracts and bundling deals made it harder for other search engines to compete. These tactics, he said, helped the company entrench its dominance by keeping users within its ecosystem. India's competition watchdog has been actively questioning how Google dominates the tech space. The government is working on a Digital Competition Law, and the U.S. trial could provide a clear example to follow. The case may offer a roadmap for structural remedies. It also highlights how search and browser infrastructure now play a key role in the growth of AI tools like ChatGPT. Turley said ChatGPT still relies on real-time search data to deliver accurate answers and is "years away" from being fully independent. The DOJ wants Google to separate Chrome from its search business to make the market fairer. The proposal shows a growing gap between companies creating AI tools and the tech giants that control the platforms those tools depend on. If the court agrees to a breakup, it could give smaller AI companies a better chance to compete. It might also set a global precedent for how countries can regulate powerful tech platforms.

Google search antitrust remedy must address AI, DOJ warns while...

Justice Department lawyers warned that Google's search dominance is spilling over into the AI race that threatens to crush rivals as the remedy phase of the landmark antitrust case against the tech giant kicked off Monday. Google is already leveraging artificial intelligence as a "method to access search" and will continue to do so without government intervention, DOJ attorney David Dahlquist said during opening statements in a Washington, DC, court. "This court's remedy should be forward-looking and not ignore what is on the horizon," said Dahlquist, who noted that the government would call witnesses from OpenAI and Perplexity to weigh in on how Google's dominance has impacted the AI race. The case is being heard by US District Judge Amit Mehta, who will determine appropriate remedies after ruling last August that Sundar Pichai-led Google is a "monopolist" that illegally dominates the online search market. The DOJ has asked Mehta to force Google to sell off its Chrome web browser. The feds also said Google should have to end its tactic of paying companies like Apple and AT&T to ensure its search engine is enabled by default on most smartphones. Additionally, the feds are seeking a court-ordered requirement that Google share its search data with rivals. They've also pushed for a forced divestment of Google's Android operating system if initial court-ordered remedies prove ineffective after five years. Shares of Google parent Alphabet were down 3% in mid-day trading amid a broad sell-off. Google said it will appeal the judge's final decision in the case once the remedies are decided. The company claims that a forced selloff of Chrome and Android would "break these platforms," put US national security at risk and potentially allow China to leapfrog the US in the race to develop AI and other key technologies. "When it comes to antitrust remedies, the US Supreme Court has said that "caution is key," Google vice president of regulatory affairs Lee-Anne Mulholland said in a blog post ahead of the trial. "DOJ's proposal throws that caution to the wind. We look forward to making our case in court." Google officials had reportedly pressed Trump's DOJ to ease up on its proposed remedies in the weeks leading up to the trial. Closing statements are scheduled for late May. Mehta's final decision on how to fix Google's monopoly over search is expected by August. The DOJ's search case was initially brought in 2020 during President Trump's first term. It went to trial in 2023 under President Joe Biden. In a speech outside the courthouse on Monday, DOJ antitrust chief Gail Slater said the case to break up Google "has unified our nation" and confirmed "a bipartisan consensus that strong antitrust enforcement against Big Tech is sorely needed." Slater also rejected Google's argument that a breakup would somehow threaten US national security. "You know what is dangerous? The threat Google presents to our freedom of speech, to our freedom of thought, to free American digital markets. You know what is irresponsible? Leaving Google's monopoly abuse unaddressed," Slater said. The DOJ search case's remedy phase began just days after Google suffered a major defeat in separate federal antitrust lawsuit targeting its digital advertising business. A federal judge ruled that Google operates two separate illegal monopolies over digital ad technology. The DOJ is also seeking a breakup of the company in that case.

Google mulled exclusive Gemini AI, Chrome deals with Samsung last...

Alphabet's Google contemplated deals with Android phone makers such as Samsung last year that would provide exclusivity for not only its search app, but also for its Gemini AI app and Chrome browser, according to a document shown at the second day of an antitrust trial. The Justice Department and a broad coalition of state attorneys general are seeking an order from a judge in Washington that would require Google to sell its Chrome browser and take other measures. They hope to end what the judge found was Google's monopoly in online search and related advertising. In that ruling, US District Judge Amit Mehta found that Google protected its search monopoly through exclusive agreements with Samsung Electronics and others to have its search engine installed as the default on new devices. Google entered a new, non-exclusive agreement with Samsung on April 1 that includes no restriction on the smartphone maker loading alternative search products, according to a document shown at trial. Google had proposed loosening its agreements to address Mehta's ruling but had not announced it was already doing so. Prosecutors raised concerns in opening statements on Monday that Google's search monopoly could give it advantages in AI, and that its AI products are another way to lead users to its search engine. OpenAI's ChatGPT head of product Nick Turley is expected to take the stand on Tuesday and testify about how Google's exclusive agreements make it harder to distribute AI products such as ChatGPT. Google has said the case is not about AI, and that it faces robust competition from companies including Meta Platforms.

Google considered exclusivity deals for search, AI app, and browser - Reuters By Investing.com

Investing.com -- Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL)'s Google reportedly considered striking exclusive deals with Android phone manufacturers such as Samsung (LON:0593xq) last year. These deals would have provided exclusivity not only for Google's search app but also for its Gemini AI app and Chrome browser, as per a document presented on the second day of an ongoing antitrust trial, as reported by Reuters. The U.S. Department of Justice, along with a wide coalition of state attorneys general, are pursuing an order from a Washington judge that would compel Google to sell its Chrome browser among other measures. Their goal is to terminate what the judge identified as Google's monopoly over online search and related advertising. According to U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta's ruling, Google shielded its search monopoly via exclusive agreements with Samsung Electronics (KS:005930) and other companies. These agreements mandated Google's search engine to be installed as the default on new devices. On Monday, prosecutors expressed concerns that Google's search monopoly could provide it an edge in the AI sector. They also suggested that Google's AI products could be another means to direct users to its search engine. Google, however, has countered that the case is not about AI and that it experiences strong competition from other firms, including Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META).

OpenAI wants to buy Google Chrome - Softonic

OpenAI says it's ready to buy Google Chrome if forced to be sold in antitrust ruling, hoping to redefine the web experience with an AI-first approach. In a surprising revelation during the ongoing antitrust trial against Google, OpenAI's ChatGPT chief, Nick Turley, stated that the company would be interested in acquiring Google Chrome if the opportunity arose. The comment came as the U.S. Department of Justice explores remedies to reduce Google's dominance in the search and browser markets. Turley emphasized that gaining control of Chrome could allow OpenAI to introduce users to a truly AI-first browsing experience. Speaking in court, Turley expressed concerns about OpenAI's difficulty integrating its services on Android, a space currently dominated by Google's Gemini. With Google owning both the Android platform and the Chrome browser, OpenAI fears being shut out of critical digital entry points like browsers and app stores. The Department of Justice argues that divesting Chrome and possibly Android would be the only effective way to dismantle Google's monopoly, opening the door to competition. Turley agreed, noting that Chrome under OpenAI could offer users a browsing environment centered on intelligent, AI-driven interactions. In response, Google defended its practices, revealing that it pays Samsung to preinstall Gemini on its devices. However, it claims the contract allows for other AI apps to be offered. Despite competition from Microsoft, Meta, and OpenAI, Google insists users prefer its ecosystem and shouldn't be forced into alternatives. As the trial unfolds over the next three weeks, the possibility of a major shift in the tech landscape looms, especially if the court mandates Google to part with Chrome. Whether OpenAI or another party steps in, the future of how we access the web could soon look very different.

OpenAI is interested in acquiring Chrome if Google is forced to sell it - Softonic

OpenAI has expressed its interest in acquiring the Chrome browser if Google is forced to sell it, following an antitrust lawsuit against the company. Nick Turley, product manager at OpenAI, stated during a hearing in Washington, D.C., that the startup is ready to consider the purchase of the world's most popular browser, in case the court decides on that measure as part of the sanctions against Google. Judge Amit Mehta is the one who will determine the actions to be taken against Google, after a previous ruling found that the company maintained an illegal monopoly in the field of online searches. The lawyers for the United States government have requested that Google be forced to sell its Chrome browser, arguing that artificial intelligence could further increase its dominance in the internet search sector. Google's response has been vigorous, claiming that the Department of Justice (DOJ) proposal is excessive and beyond the scope of the case. According to Kent Walker, Google's president of global affairs, the DOJ's interventionist agenda could harm citizens and compromise the United States' technological leadership on the global stage. A Bloomberg analyst has estimated that the sales value of Chrome could exceed 15 billion dollars, a significant number given that the browser has more than 3 billion users. During his testimony, Turley also mentioned that OpenAI had attempted to integrate its search technology into ChatGPT, but it was rejected by Google, reflecting the competitive tensions in the development of artificial intelligence in the tech sector. The DOJ's case against Google for its dominance in online searches was filed in 2020 and, following the decision in August 2024 against Google, the company has appealed.

Google could use AI to extend search monopoly, DOJ says as trial begins

(Reuters) -Alphabet's Google needs strong measures imposed on it to prevent it from using its artificial intelligence products to extend its dominance in online search, a U.S. Department of Justice attorney said as trial in the historic antitrust case began on Monday. The outcome of the trial could fundamentally reshape the internet by unseating Google as the go-to portal for information online. The DOJ has compared the lawsuit to its past efforts to break up AT&T, Microsoft and Standard Oil. "The time to tell Google and all other monopolists who are out there listening, and they are listening, that there are consequences when you break the antitrust laws," DOJ attorney David Dahlquist said during his opening statement. The DOJ and a broad coalition of state attorneys general seek to force Google to sell off its Chrome browser and take other measures to restore competition even as search evolves to overlap with generative AI products such as ChatGPT. "This court's remedy should be forward-looking and not ignore what is on the horizon," Dahlquist said. Witnesses from Perplexity AI and OpenAI will testify about how search and AI overlap and how Google's dominance affects their business, Dahlquist said. Google argues that its AI products are outside the scope of the case, which focused on search engines. Adopting the proposed remedies "would hold back American innovation at a critical juncture," Google executive Lee-Anne Mulholland said in a blog post on Sunday. The company plans to appeal the final ruling in the case. Antitrust enforcers have proposed far-reaching measures designed to quickly open the search market and give new competitors a leg up. Their proposals include ending exclusive agreements in which Google pays billions of dollars annually to Apple and other device vendors to make Google the default search engine on their tablets and smartphones. Google would also have to license search results to competitors, among other requirements. And it would be made to sell its Android mobile operating system if other remedies fail to restore competition. Google sees the proposals as extreme, and said the court should stick to limiting the terms of its default agreements. The $1.9 trillion tech company has been subsidizing browser makers such as Mozilla by paying to remain the default search engine. Cutting off that financial support could threaten their existence, Google says. And ending payments to device makers would raise the cost of smartphones, the company claims. Google plans to call witnesses from Mozilla, Verizon and Apple, which launched a failed bid to intervene in the case. Few potential buyers of Chrome have the same incentive as Google to maintain the free open-source code that underpins it, and which others including Microsoft use as a basis for their own browsers, the company says. The trial comes on the heels of a win for the DOJ in a Virginia court on Thursday where a judge ruled in a separate antitrust case that Google maintains an illegal monopoly in advertising technology. Meta Platforms is currently facing its own antitrust trial over the acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp. (Reporting by Jody Godoy in WashingtonEditing by Marguerita Choy and Nick Zieminski)

Google declined OpenAI bid for partnership, exec testifies at trial

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Alphabet's Google shot down a bid by OpenAI to use its search technology within ChatGPT, an OpenAI executive testified on Tuesday at Google's antitrust trial in Washington. OpenAI reached out to Google after experiencing issues with its own search provider, ChatGPT head of product Nick Turley said, without naming the provider. ChatGPT uses technology from Microsoft's search engine, Bing. "We believe having multiple partners, and in particular Google's API, would enable us to provide a better product to users," OpenAI told Google, according to an email shown at trial. OpenAI first reached out in July, and Google declined the request in August, saying it would involve too many competitors, according to the email. "We have no partnership with Google today," Turley said. The U.S. Department of Justice and a broad coalition of state attorneys general are seeking an order from a judge in Washington that would require Google to sell its Chrome browser and take other measures. They hope to end what the judge found was Google's monopoly in online search and related advertising. The DOJ's proposal to make Google share search data with competitors as one means of restoring competition would help accelerate efforts to improve ChatGPT, Turley said. Search is a critical part of ChatGPT to provide answers to user queries that are up to date and factual, Turley said. ChatGPT is years away from being able to use its own search technology to answer 80% of queries, he added. Prosecutors raised concerns in opening statements on Monday that Google's search monopoly could give it advantages in AI, and that its AI products are another way to lead users to its search engine. Google has said the case is not about AI, and that it faces robust competition from companies including Meta Platforms and Microsoft . In August, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta found that Google protected its search monopoly through exclusive agreements with Samsung Electronics and others to have its search engine installed as the default on new devices. Google had contemplated deals with Android phone makers such as Samsung that would provide exclusivity for not only its search app, but also for its Gemini AI app and Chrome browser, according to a document shown at trial. Instead of entering more exclusive agreements, however, Google loosened its most recent deals with device makers Samsung and Motorola and wireless carriers AT&T and Verizon, allowing them to load rival search offerings, other documents showed. The non-exclusive agreements mirror what Google has said should be the remedy to address Mehta's ruling. The DOJ wants the judge to go farther, banning Google from making lucrative payments in exchange for installation of its search app. Google sent letters as recently as last week reiterating that its agreements did not prohibit the companies from installing other AI products on new devices, Google executive Peter Fitzgerald testified on Tuesday. (Reporting by Jody Godoy in Washington, Editing by Nick Zieminski and Deepa Babington)

OpenAI would buy Google's Chrome, exec testifies at trial

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -OpenAI would be interested in buying Google's Chrome if antitrust enforcers are successful in forcing the Alphabet unit to sell the popular web browser as part of a bid to restore competition in search, an OpenAI executive testified on Tuesday at Google's antitrust trial in Washington. ChatGPT head of product Nick Turley made the statement while testifying at trial in the case where U.S. Department of Justice seeks to require Google to undertake far-reaching measures restore competition in online search. The judge overseeing the trial in Washington found last year that Google has a monopoly in online search and related advertising. Google has not offered Chrome for sale. The company plans to appeal the ruling that it holds a monopoly. 'BETTER PRODUCT' Turley testified earlier in the day that Google shot down a bid by OpenAI to use its search technology within ChatGPT. OpenAI had reached out to Google after experiencing issues with its own search provider, Turley said, without naming the provider. ChatGPT uses technology from Microsoft's search engine, Bing. "We believe having multiple partners, and in particular Google's API, would enable us to provide a better product to users," OpenAI told Google, according to an email shown at trial. OpenAI first reached out in July, and Google declined the request in August, saying it would involve too many competitors, according to the email. "We have no partnership with Google today," Turley said. The DOJ's proposal to make Google share search data with competitors as one means of restoring competition would help accelerate efforts to improve ChatGPT, Turley said. Search is a critical part of ChatGPT to provide answers to user queries that are up to date and factual, Turley said. ChatGPT is years away from being able to use its own search technology to answer 80% of queries, he added. Prosecutors raised concerns in opening statements on Monday that Google's search monopoly could give it advantages in AI, and that its AI products are another way to lead users to its search engine. Google has said the case is not about AI, and that it faces robust competition from companies including Meta Platforms and Microsoft. ENDING EXCLUSIVE DEALS In August, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta found that Google protected its search monopoly through exclusive agreements with Samsung Electronics and others to have its search engine installed as the default on new devices. Google had contemplated deals with Android phone makers such as Samsung that would provide exclusivity for not only its search app, but also for its Gemini AI app and Chrome browser, according to a document shown at trial. Instead of entering more exclusive agreements, however, Google loosened its most recent deals with device makers Samsung and Motorola and wireless carriers AT&T and Verizon, allowing them to load rival search offerings, other documents showed. The non-exclusive agreements mirror what Google has said should be the remedy to address Mehta's ruling. The DOJ wants the judge to go farther, banning Google from making lucrative payments in exchange for installation of its search app. Google sent letters as recently as last week reiterating that its agreements did not prohibit the companies from installing other AI products on new devices, Google executive Peter Fitzgerald testified on Tuesday. (Reporting by Jody Godoy in Washington, Editing by Nick Zieminski and Deepa Babington)

Trial testimony reveals OpenAI interest in Chrome: reports

NEW YORK (AFP) - OpenAI is ready to buy Chrome if Google is forced to sell its popular browser as part of antitrust trial, a top executive testified Tuesday, according to media reports. OpenAI product manager Nick Turley revealed the startup's interest in the world's most popular internet browser while testifying in court in Washington DC. Turley spoke in front of a judge who will decide what remedies to impose on Google after making a landmark decision last year that the tech giant maintained an illegal monopoly in online search. US government attorneys have urged Judge Amit Mehta to force Google to sell off its Chrome browser, arguing artificial intelligence is poised to ramp up the tech giant's online search dominance. Google countered in the case that the US government has gone way beyond the scope of the suit by recommending it be forced to sell Chrome and holding open the option to force a sale of its Android mobile operating system. The legal case focused on Google's agreements with partners such as Apple and Samsung to distribute its search tools, noted Google president of global affairs Kent Walker. "The DOJ chose to push a radical interventionist agenda that would harm Americans and America's global technology leadership," Walker wrote in a blog post. "The DOJ's wildly overbroad proposal goes miles beyond the Court's decision." A Bloomberg analyst has estimated the price of Chrome browser, which has more than three billion users, at USD15 billion or more. Turley said during his testimony that OpenAI had approached Google about integrating its search technology into ChatGPT artificial intelligence power digital assistant but was rebuffed, according to media reports. Google is among the tech companies investing heavily to be among the leaders in AI, and is weaving the technology into search and other online offerings. The DOJ case against Google regarding its dominance in internet search was filed in 2020. Mehta ruled against Google in August 2024 and the tech giant has appealed.

OpenAI would buy Chrome if Google is forced to sell, says ChatGPT chief at antitrust trials

The trial is part of a three-week hearing focused on deciding what actions Google must take after being found guilty of holding a monopoly in the search market. OpenAI has shown interest in buying Google's Chrome browser if a court orders the tech giant to sell it. This was revealed during a high-profile trial where the US government is pushing for changes in Google's business practices. Nick Turley, OpenAI's ChatGPT chief, said this in court on Tuesday, according to Bloomberg. When asked if OpenAI would try to purchase Chrome if it became available, Turley said, "Yes, we would, as would many other parties." The trial is part of a three-week hearing focused on deciding what actions Alphabet Inc's Google must take after being found guilty of holding a monopoly in the search market. Judge Amit Mehta is expected to make a final decision by August. Among the changes suggested by the Justice Department is that Google should be forced to sell its Chrome browser. Also read: Govt asks Google to remove this Chinese social media app from Play Store, here's why OpenAI's ChatGPT currently has an extension in Chrome browser which users can download. But Turley said owning Chrome or having deeper access to it would help them improve the overall user experience. "You could offer a really incredible experience" if ChatGPT was integrated into Chrome, he said. We would "have the ability to introduce users into what an AI first experience looks like." Turley also mentioned that one of OpenAI's biggest challenges right now is getting its product into more hands. While ChatGPT has been integrated into Apple's iPhones, the company has struggled to make similar deals with Android phone makers. In comparison, Google has been paying Samsung to pre-install its Gemini AI app on Samsung phones. Though the deal isn't exclusive, Turley said OpenAI wasn't able to make much progress in talks with Samsung because Google could offer more money. "It was not a lack of trying," Turley said. "We never got to a point where we could discuss concrete terms." Also read: Google found guilty of ad monopoly abuse, may face ad business split ChatGPT, which launched in November 2022, quickly became one of the fastest-growing software products ever. As of February this year, OpenAI said it has over 400 million weekly active users.