The European Commission did something on July 16 that no competitor has managed in years. It cracked open Google's two most valuable assets: the default position on 2 billion Android devices and two decades of search behavior data.
Under legally binding decisions under the Digital Markets Act, Google must open 11 specific Android features to rival AI assistants and share anonymized search data with competitors on fair terms. The deadlines are fixed: search data sharing from January 2027, Android changes from July 2027.
This is not a fine. This is a structural remedy.
Google's Android and Search dominance has been the foundation of its AI strategy. Gemini is pre-installed on Android phones, giving it privileged access to system features. Google Search generates ranking, query, click, and view data at a scale no competitor can replicate.
The EU just attacked both moats at once. And the timing is unusually brutal for Google—the same week Gemini 3.5 Pro reportedly missed its release target for a third time.
Android's 11 Features: ChatGPT Could Soon Replace Gemini
The Android decision specifies 11 features across four categories: how users invoke an AI assistant (including voice activation, similar to "Hey Google"), access to on-device app data, the ability to perform actions in apps and on the operating system (like booking a taxi, suggesting replies in chat apps, or answering questions about a recently visited place), and access to on-device resources like machine-learning models.
Five of these features—including centralized data access and agentic screen automation—require certification under Google's Qualified AI Assistant Program. Google must publish draft certification terms by February 2027 and final terms by May 2027.
The practical impact is direct. An Android user could eventually choose ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, or Mistral as their default system assistant, with the same depth of integration as Gemini. They could say "Hey ChatGPT" to book a ride, send a message, or control device settings. For the first time, Google's distribution advantage on Android is legally required to be shared.
Search Data: Google's 20-Year Lead, Now on FRAND Terms
The search data decision is equally significant. Google must share anonymized ranking, query, click, and view data with eligible rivals on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory terms.
The definition of eligible rivals is notably broad. It includes conventional search engines and, explicitly, AI chatbots that provide search-engine functionality. The European Commission has effectively recognized AI chatbots as search engine alternatives. To qualify, a provider must pass a "genuine economic activity test"—two years of trading, or under two years with over €50 million in capital, plus at least 50,000 monthly EU users—and clear sanctions and third-country risk screening.
Google can charge for the data. The Commission's pricing framework uses incremental-cost-based pricing, fixed for five years. Small and medium enterprises always qualify for strict incremental-cost pricing; very large beneficiaries may be charged up to Google Search's own operating margin.
The data is not free. But for the first time, it is accessible.
Google's president of global affairs, Kent Walker, strongly pushed back: "Today's decisions risk undermining vital privacy and security guardrails for millions of Europeans. We have repeatedly offered solutions to safeguard users while satisfying the DMA's goals, but these rulings discount extensive evidence of user harm".
The Commission's response is embedded in the measures. The data sharing requires anonymization, a 13-month retention cap, a ban on re-identification attempts, and independent ISAE 3000 assurance before access and annually thereafter. The five restricted Android features require certification from Google's qualified program. The EU is not creating an open door; it is creating a regulated one.
The strategic significance is harder to overstate. Yale School of Management professor Fiona Scott Morton told Euractiv: "Once the monopolist is entrenched, there are big network effects, data effects. It's very difficult to dislodge that monopolist, so it's far easier to prevent [them] from existing in the first place".
The EU is intervening early, before AI assistance markets lock in around the same incumbents that won search and mobile.
Google's counterargument is not without merit. The company argues that its vetting processes for third-party AI assistants protect user privacy and security. The EU's response is conditional access, not unfettered access. The fight over the details—certification standards, FRAND pricing calculations, data-sharing responsibility—will unfold over the next 12 to 18 months.
For the rest of the AI industry, the message is clear. The regulatory door is opening. For OpenAI, Anthropic, Perplexity, and Mistral, the question is not whether they can win on technical merit alone. It is whether they can build products that take advantage of the access they have just been given.
P.S. If you are an AI assistant maker, the calendar is now your competitive advantage. January 2027 is when Google's search data becomes available. July 2027 is when Android 18 unlocks its 11 features. That is roughly 12 months of build time. The question is: what do you build with access to 2 billion Android devices and two decades of search data? The regulators have handed you a key. The rest is up to you.
