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Brussels, Belgium: The European Union demanded Thursday that Google share data with other search engines and open up its Android system to other AI services competitors, but the US giant said the measures would put privacy at risk.
The move is the latest by Brussels against the behemoth as it seeks to flex its muscles over Big Tech.
The order was made under the EU's flagship Digital Markets Act (DMA), which forces the world's biggest tech firms to open to competition in a bid to give users more choice.
The DMA is the bete noire of US President Donald Trump's administration, which accuses Brussels of unfairly targeting American companies.
Brussels said Google must start sharing search data from January 2027 and users would start benefitting from the changes to Android from July 2027.
"Thanks to these measures we hope to see emerging alternatives to Google Search and Google's AI services, such as Gemini, and that users in the EU can enjoy greater choice of services," EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen said.
For example, the EU said Android phone users should be able to use their preferred AI chatbot via voice commands, similar to the "Hey Google" command.
