EU orders Google to open search data and Android AI features to rivals

The European Commission has ordered Google to share certain search data with competitors and open Android features used by Gemini to rival AI assistants. The measures, issued under the Digital Markets Act, target two of Google’s most defensible positions: search quality built on user interaction data and privileged integration with the dominant mobile operating system.

The orders were issued as binding specification measures, a tool the Commission uses to spell out how a designated gatekeeper must comply with the DMA. The Commission said the goal is to reduce barriers for companies trying to compete with Google in search, where better query results depend in part on large volumes of behavioral data.

Google collects information on how users interact with search results and uses it to improve ranking. The Commission’s order requires Google to provide that kind of data to eligible rivals so they can improve their own search services. The order does not require broad data access for any developer. According to the Commission, recipients must operate a search engine or a chatbot with search functionality, and they may use the information only to improve search. Uses such as ad personalization are excluded.

The data must be anonymized before it is shared. The Commission said Google must apply a specified multi-layered process to remove personal data, and the company will face an annual audit to check whether that process is being applied effectively. The Commission did not disclose the volume of data Google will have to make available, the pricing terms if any, or which companies are expected to request access.

The second measure covers Android and the feature set available to Google’s Gemini assistant. The Commission said Gemini currently uses Android capabilities that are not available to competing apps. Google must make those capabilities accessible to rivals, which would allow users to trigger third-party AI assistants by voice and support assistants that can take actions inside other apps on a user’s behalf.

The deadlines differ by product. Google must make the required search changes by the end of the year, while the Android changes are due by next June.

Google objected to the orders. In a blog post, Kent Walker, Google and Alphabet’s president of global affairs, said the decisions “risk undermining vital privacy and security guardrails for millions of Europeans.” He added that Google had “repeatedly offered solutions to safeguard users while satisfying the DMA’s goals,” and said the rulings discounted evidence of user harm.

The orders add to the EU’s broader DMA campaign against Alphabet. The Financial Times has reported that the bloc is preparing to fine Google hundreds of millions of euros over alleged DMA violations. Those matters relate to two competition probes: one concerning restrictions on Android developers’ ability to promote their apps, and another finding that Google favored its own services over competitors in search results.

For search and AI assistant companies, the practical value of the Commission’s move will depend on implementation details that remain undisclosed. Anonymized behavioral data could help smaller search providers tune results, but the order’s limits on eligible recipients and permitted uses will shape how much competitive pressure it creates. On Android, broader access for third-party assistants may matter more as AI agents move from answering prompts to controlling apps, a shift that makes operating system permissions a distribution advantage.

This story draws on original reporting from SiliconANGLE.