In what could become a defining moment for the future of Big Tech, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has kicked off its highly anticipated antitrust trial against Alphabet’s Google. The central accusation? That Google is leveraging its powerful position in artificial intelligence (AI) to entrench its monopoly over online search.
DOJ attorney David Dahlquist didn’t mince words during his opening statement, asserting that Google must face serious consequences for allegedly breaking antitrust laws. The Justice Department is calling for bold remedies, including a forced sale of Google’s Chrome browser and the unwinding of exclusive deals that lock in Google as the default search engine on countless devices.
“This is the time to show Google—and every other would-be monopolist—that there are consequences for bending the rules,” Dahlquist said.
This historic case doesn’t just target Google’s past behavior. The DOJ is focusing on how AI is shaping the future of search. Prosecutors argue that Google’s AI tools, like the Gemini app, don’t just improve its products—they also steer users back into its already dominant search engine. They claim this creates a feedback loop that makes it nearly impossible for rivals to compete.
In a bombshell revelation, trial documents showed that Google has agreed to pay Samsung substantial monthly sums to install the Gemini AI app on smartphones, potentially through 2028. While the exact figures are unknown, the DOJ characterized them as “enormous.”
The trial is set to feature testimony from high-profile AI players, including Nick Turley, head of product at OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT. Their input could help define how AI intersects with monopoly power in the tech space.
Google’s legal team, however, strongly pushed back. In his opening remarks, Google’s attorney John Schmidtlein dismissed the DOJ’s proposed remedies as “a wishlist for competitors,” arguing that the company’s innovations shouldn’t be punished. Google executives have also insisted that the DOJ is overreaching by dragging AI into a case that centers on search engine dominance.
But the stakes are high. If successful, the DOJ’s case could set the stage for a dramatic shake-up of how we access information online. Prosecutors want to ban Google’s exclusive contracts, force the company to license search results to rivals, and even consider breaking off its Android operating system if other remedies don’t work.
Google warns that such moves could drive up smartphone costs and damage companies like Mozilla, which rely on Google’s payments. The company is expected to call witnesses from Apple, Verizon, and Mozilla to defend its position.
This isn’t Google’s only legal headache. Just last week, it suffered a defeat in another antitrust case involving its online advertising business. Meanwhile, Meta is facing its own trial over its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp.
With bipartisan support behind the DOJ’s actions—spanning both the Trump and Biden administrations—the message is clear: the U.S. government is serious about checking Big Tech’s power. The outcome of this case could redraw the map of the digital economy for years to come.
