OpenAI would be open to acquiring Google’s Chrome browser if antitrust regulators succeed in forcing its parent company, Alphabet, to divest the product, a company executive testified on Tuesday during Google’s antitrust trial in Washington.
Nick Turley, head of product for ChatGPT, made the remark as he took the stand in the US Department of Justice’s (DOJ) ongoing case, which seeks sweeping measures to restore competition in online search. The judge presiding over the trial previously ruled that Google holds a monopoly in the search and search advertising markets.
While Google has not indicated any intention to sell Chrome, it plans to appeal the monopoly ruling.
The start of the closely-watched trial also shed light on the broader competition in the artificial intelligence sector, as major tech firms and startups race to expand their generative AI tools and grow their user bases.
In opening arguments on Monday, government prosecutors argued that Google’s dominance in online search could give it an unfair edge in the AI market, suggesting that its AI offerings may also be a means to funnel users back to its search engine.
Google, however, has pointed to active competition from other players in the AI space, including Meta and Microsoft.
During the proceedings, Turley was confronted with an internal OpenAI document presented by Google’s legal team in which he wrote that ChatGPT was leading the consumer chatbot market and did not view Google as its main rival. Turley explained that the document was meant to motivate staff and that OpenAI still saw value in forming distribution partnerships.
Turley, who is testifying as a witness for the government, also disclosed that Google had rejected OpenAI’s proposal to integrate its search technology into ChatGPT. The request came after OpenAI encountered issues with its existing search provider, which Turley did not name. ChatGPT currently relies on Microsoft’s Bing for search capabilities.
According to an email presented at trial, OpenAI approached Google in July, stating: “We believe having multiple partners, and in particular Google’s API, would enable us to provide a better product to users.” Google declined in August, citing concerns over involving too many competitors.
“We have no partnership with Google today,” Turley confirmed in court.
He also expressed support for the DOJ’s proposal that Google be required to share its search data with rivals, saying the move would help speed up improvements to ChatGPT’s performance.
Turley underscored the importance of accurate and current search data for ChatGPT to provide reliable answers to user queries. He noted that the tool remains several years away from achieving its goal of independently handling 80% of search queries.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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