Don’t Expect AI To Disrupt Google’s Monopoly on Search

In a recent episode of the podcast Acquired, venture capitalists and hosts Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal argued that the horrible roll-out of Google’s Bard AI chatbot in February 2023 — which led the company’s stock to drop 8% in a day — was a blessing in disguise. That’s because two years later, after a US federal judge ruled that Google had illegally monopolized online search, he also concluded that the specter of artificial intelligence would ensure the company faced new competition. Google didn’t need to change much about its business, the judge ruled, in part because the looming threat of AI would help solve the problem.

“As flat-footed as Google was when ChatGPT happened, if the outcome of this is they avoid a Microsoft-level distraction and damage to their business from a US federal court monopoly judgment,” Rosenthal said, it was “worth it.” “It actually saves Google.”