OpenAI Would Consider Buying Chrome If Google Is Forced to Sell It
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OpenAI would consider acquiring Google’s Chrome browser if the search giant is forced to sell it to remedy its anticompetitive search practices, says ChatGPT product lead Nick Turley.
Turley’s comments were part of his testimony at a court hearing that will determine the remedies for Google’s antitrust violations, The Information reports.
The United States Department of Justice (DoJ) wants Google to sell its Chrome browser after the department won an antitrust lawsuit against Google in 2024. US federal judge Amit Mehta ruled that Google holds a monopoly in the search and advertising business, violating US antitrust laws.
Judge Mehta made it clear that Google’s behavior meets the standard of a monopoly as defined under Section 2 of the Sherman Act, the primary legislation that’s used to determine if a monopoly exists.
The Judge is now deciding on the punishment and required remedies Google will face to resolve the situation.
The DoJ highlighted OpenAI as a company whose growth has been hampered by Google’s stranglehold on the search industry. In 2024, OpenAI requested access to Google’s search data to improve SearchGPT, but Google turned it down.
In addition to potentially being required to divest itself of its popular Chrome browser, Google could also be ordered to open up its search data to rivals. Turley told the court that having access to Google’s real-time search data would allow OpenAI to “build a better product faster.”
The court is also expected to prohibit Google from entering search deals with Apple and several other companies. Over the past several years, Google has paid Apple billions to be the default search engine for Apple’s Safari browser on the iOS, iPadOS, and Mac platforms. The deal gives Google a significant advantage over other search providers, like Bing and DuckDuckGo.
Apple has always maintained that Google is the best search option for its customers. Apple SVP Eddy Cue told the court that last fall. However, Apple is also likely influenced in its feelings about the Google search engine by the 36% cut of Google’s ad revenue that results from searches performed in the Safari browser.
In his ruling last year, Judge Mehta noted that one way Google was able to maintain its monopoly was the staggering barrier for any other company to enter and compete in the search industry. He cited testimony that said “it would cost Apple billions to compete in the search market” even before it made the necessary “multi-billion-dollar investment needed to build and maintain an ad platform or other means of monetization.”
The DoJ has also recommended that Google divest itself of its Android platform, but those steps would only be taken if the other proposed remedies do not prove effective at preventing Google from “improperly leveraging” the mobile operating system or if Google tries to find ways around the other requirements that will be put in place.
Turley also told the court that OpenAI has offered to give Apple a cut of the revenue generated by the Siri/ChatGPT integration. However, he didn’t clarify whether Apple had accepted any payments. Previous reports have indicated that Apple and OpenAI have a deal that doesn’t include either company paying the other.
