Google's profit, AI growth at risk in US bid to end search dominance

BENGALURU - The US Department of Justice's (DOJ) proposed remedies to break up Google's search dominance could weaken its main profit engine and stall its advances in artificial intelligence (AI), even though a final outcome may be years away, analysts said.

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The DOJ said on Oct 8 it may ask a judge to force Google to divest parts of its business, such as its Chrome browser and Android operating system, that the Alphabet-owned company used to maintain an illegal monopoly in online search.

Barring Google from collecting sensitive user data, requiring it to make search results and indexes available to rivals, letting websites opt out of their content being used to train AI products and making Google report to a "court-appointed technical committee" are also on the table.

Alphabet investors, who have seen several antitrust actions in 2024, including a ruling on Oct 7 ordering Google to open up its app store, sent shares 1.5 per cent lower to US$161.86 at Oct 9's close after the DOJ news.

The remedies strike at the heart of the internet empire that has made Google synonymous with search and can reduce its revenue while giving its rivals more room to grow.