The European Commission has started a formal antitrust investigation into Google over how it uses AI summaries in search results. The move comes despite pressure from the White House and warnings from Google that the action risks stifling innovation.
Brussels is concerned that Google may be using news site content in features such as AI Overviews and AI Mode without paying publishers properly. Regulators also worry that sites cannot opt out of having their content used this way while still keeping access to Google Search. Many publishers depend on search traffic and fear AI summaries lead to zero-click searches where users read a summary but do not visit the original site.
The Commission is also looking into whether Google used videos and other material from YouTube to train its AI systems without fairly compensating creators or letting them opt out. At the same time rival AI developers are not allowed by YouTube rules to use the platform’s content for their own model training, the Commission noted.
Teresa Ribera, the EU competition chief, said: “A free and democratic society depends on diverse media, open access to information, and a vibrant creative landscape. These values are central to who we are as Europeans.”
Google responded with a statement that appears in full here: “This complaint risks stifling innovation in a market that is more competitive than ever. Europeans deserve to benefit from the latest technologies, and we will continue to work closely with the news and creative industries as they transition to the AI era.”
The probe follows a recent EU antitrust case into Meta. It also comes after the EU fined the social platform X €120 million for not following digital rules. That fine drew sharp criticism from X owner Elon Musk who said the EU must be “abolished,” and from former US President Donald Trump who called the penalty “nasty.”
US officials have often criticised EU tech rules as unfair to American firms. The EU rejects that view. Officials say the rules are neutral and aim to protect Europe’s digital space and democratic values.
Leave a comment