The US Department of Justice (DOJ) on Friday withdrew its proposal to force Google’s parent company, Alphabet, to divest its investments in artificial intelligence (AI) companies, including its stake in Anthropic, a competitor to OpenAI, in a bid to promote more competition in the online search market.
However, the DOJ, alongside a coalition of 38 state attorneys general, is still pushing for a court order requiring Google to sell its Chrome browser and adopt other measures to address what a judge has called Google’s illegal monopoly in search.
- The DOJ’s legal filings stated, “The American dream is about higher values than just cheap goods and ‘free’ online services. These values include freedom of speech, freedom of association, freedom to innovate, and freedom to compete in a market undistorted by the controlling hand of a monopolist.”
- A Google spokesperson criticized the DOJ’s decision, stating that the “sweeping proposals go far beyond the Court’s decision and would harm American consumers, economy, and national security.”
- Anthropic, the AI company in which Google holds a minority stake, has argued that losing this investment would unfairly benefit OpenAI and Microsoft, according to court filings.
Prosecutors gathered new evidence since their initial draft recommendation in November, suggesting that banning Google from investing in AI could lead to unintended consequences for the rapidly evolving AI sector. As part of their revised proposal, they are requesting that Google notify the government of any future investments in generative AI.
Google, which has expressed plans to appeal, has proposed a change in its agreements with Apple and other partners to make Google the default search engine on new devices. A trial to review these proposals is set for April.
This case is one of several ongoing antitrust actions in the US targeting Big Tech companies. Apple, Meta Platforms, and Amazon.com are also facing allegations of maintaining illegal monopolies in their respective markets.
In response, Google has argued that the DOJ’s approach could undermine its ability to compete in the AI space and negatively affect America’s global technological and economic leadership.
Although the DOJ’s proposals from November still stand, some changes have been made, such as allowing Google to charge a fee for access to its search query data for competitors, provided they do not pose a national security risk.
The proposal has received support from both Democratic and Republican attorneys general, as well as the Alphabet Workers Union-CWA.
