Google ordered to open Android and Search to rivals in Europe
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- EU issued two DMA decisions on Thursday requiring Google to give rival AI assistants and search engines comparable access to Android system features and Google Search data.
- Google must let competing AI assistants access the same hardware integration as Gemini, including the ability to interact with apps and respond to voice commands like "Hey Google," letting users choose ChatGPT, Claude, or Perplexity as deeply integrated system assistants.
- Google must share Search data with competing search engines and AI chatbots that function as search engines — a remedy that echoes the data-sharing ordered in the US search antitrust case.
- Google pushed back on both measures, arguing the requirements pose unacceptable risks to user privacy and security and compromise its products.
- Google retains the ability to vet which services get deeper Android access to ensure safety and security, per the EU.
- Henna Virkkunen, the European Commission's executive vice president for tech sovereignty, said the measures aim to enable fair competition and give EU users greater choice beyond Google Search and Gemini.
- The rulings may preview how Brussels approaches Apple, which declined to release Siri AI in Europe, explicitly blaming DMA interoperability requirements.
Why it matters: EU users gain a concrete new option: AI assistants like ChatGPT or Claude can now plug into Android at the same depth as Gemini, and search rivals get access to Google's query data. Google retains the ability to vet which services get hardware-level access. With Apple having already refused to ship Siri AI in Europe, blaming DMA interoperability, the EU now has a template to press further.
