The European Union has ordered Google to give competing AI assistants and search engines greater access to Android and Google Search under the bloc’s Digital Markets Act (DMA).
The decision is designed to reduce Google’s dominance over two of its most important platforms while giving users more choice and creating new opportunities for competing AI services.
The rulings focus on two key areas. The first requires Google to provide rival AI assistants with the same level of access to Android system features and device capabilities that its own Gemini assistant receives. This means users could eventually choose services such as ChatGPT, Claude, or Perplexity as their primary Android assistant, allowing them to interact with apps, respond to voice commands, and access phone hardware in much the same way as Gemini.
The second decision targets Google Search by requiring the company to share certain search-related data with competing search engines and AI services. The European Commission said AI chatbots increasingly function as search tools, making access to this information important for fair competition. The move is similar to remedies imposed in the United States, where Google has also been instructed to share valuable search data with rivals.
Both rulings come through regulatory proceedings under the EU’s Digital Markets Act, which requires large technology companies classified as “gatekeepers” to give competitors fair access to key systems and data. Rather than imposing financial penalties, the measures require Google to change how its products operate to comply with the law.
Google has criticized the decisions, saying broader access could create privacy and security risks while affecting the quality of its products. However, the European Commission said safeguards will be in place, including restrictions on how search data can be used and security checks before third-party AI assistants receive deeper Android integration.
The decisions could have wider implications across the technology industry. They also provide insight into how European regulators may apply similar interoperability rules to other major companies, including Apple, which has previously argued that the DMA’s requirements affected its plans for AI-powered Siri features in Europe.
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Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice President of the European Commission for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, said the measures are intended to encourage innovation, strengthen competition, and give users more choice by making it easier for alternative AI assistants and search services to compete with Google’s products.
EU Orders Google to Open Android and Search to Rival AI Assistants
