Google must allow AI and search engine competitors access to its services as the EU looks to curb big tech’s power.
Google must soon open its search services to AI competitors such as OpenAI, Claude, and MetaAI – as well as traditional competitors like DuckDuckGo or Bing.
The Alphabet-owned firm currently has just over 90% market share in search, according to Statista; while Bing, it’s closest competitor holds just 5.14%.
The European Union (EU) has been looking to curb the power of big tech through its Digital Markets Act (DMA) in order to improve competitiveness in the tech landscape.
This move by the European Commission, which acts as the EU competition enforcer, has come six months after the regulator opened what it dubbed ‘specification proceedings’ to assist Google in complying with the DMA.
Google has maintained its criticism of the changes. The firm’s lawyer Kent Walker told Reuters: “Today’s decisions risk undermining vital privacy and security guardrails for millions of Europeans.
“We have repeatedly offered solutions to safeguard users while satisfying the DMA’s goals, but these rulings discount extensive evidence of user harm.”
The commission is demanding Google to open up 11 features on the Android operating system, which will give AI rivals access to crucial functionalities and allow them to compete with Google’s Gemini AI.
Voice activation will be included in this, so users could use rival AI chatbots through a voice command, similar to the ‘hey Google’ process to search for information or book restaurants, taxis and event tickets.
The tech giant will also be required to share search data with other search engines.
The commission said data sharing is crucial for developing and optimising of third-party search engines and hopes this will “create a more level playing field” that fosters innovative search services, which includes privacy-focused alternatives.
Under the new guidance, the commission specifies that AI chatbots offering search functionalities are eligible to receive shared data, which must be anonymised, and Google must share the same data it collects to optimise its services.
The final measure lays out a ‘fair formula’ to calculate the price of the shared data, and a transparent process for accessing the data.
Henna Virkkunen, executive vice-president for tech sovereignty, security and democracy, said: “With today’s measures, we want to support innovation and diversity in the European Union, enabling fair competition in the markets of AI assistant for Android devices and search engines.
“Thanks to these measures we hope to see emerging alternatives to Google Search and Google’s AI services, such as Gemini, and that users in the EU can enjoy greater choice of services. All developers, large and small, are welcome to explore these new opportunities, which will certainly benefit users too.”
Users should be able to benefit from these changes from July 2027, when the next iteration of Android comes out.
Google’s has had a long running anti-trust battle with the EU over its search and ad monopoly. Last month, the UK’s competition’s watchdog introduced further conduct requirements to improve transparency and fairness in search rankings.
The EU has is looking to implement new measures to open Google’s OS for competitor AI services, a move which has the tech giant labelled “unwarranted intervention”.
With all these cases, Google has racked up billions of euros in fines and penalties relating to its search practices. It was recently ordered to pay a €4.1bn fine for its agreements, which forced phone manufacturers to pre-install Google search, the Chrome browser and the Play app store on their Android devices.
