OpenAI Versus Google: Battle for Search Engine Supremacy Takes the Limelight 

Artificial intelligence platform OpenAI is planning to come up with its own in-house browser. The browser would integrate with its chatbot (ChatGPT). 

The ChatGPT maker is also in talks or has made agreements to help enhance search features for other platforms or services. This is as per a report by The Information. 

Further, the AI platform has also spoken to chat developers and websites such as Conde Nast, Redfin, Eventbrite, and Priceline for the product. 

This comes at a time when Google has supreme dominance in the search engine space. Additionally, OpenAI already came up with ChatGPT search on October 31 last month. The intent of the same is to modify web search. “ChatGPT can now search the web in a much better way than before. You can get fast, timely answers with links to relevant web sources, which you would have previously needed to go to a search engine for,” OpenAI said in a blog statement. As of now, the search will be accessible on ChatGPT and also the company’s desktop and mobile apps. The company made the feature available for ChatGPT Plus, Team, and SearchGPT in October. Further, free users would get access to it in the upcoming months. 

Now, let’s go back to the perennial debate: Can OpenAI take away the monopoly of Google?

Read: Google Generates 25% of New Code Using AI, Says CEO Sundar Pichai

Google currently has a monopoly in the search engine with around 90 percent of the market. What has been interesting in the monopoly debate is the recent comment by the US Department of Justice on Google. The department highlighted that the tech giant should be required to sell its Chrome browser. Further, they should provide data to its competitors. 

Additionally, the department highlighted that in order to maintain monopoly, Google paid billions of dollars via agreements with smartphone providers and also tech rivals. 

The prosecutors reportedly said, “Google’s unlawful behavior has deprived rivals not only of critical distribution channels but also distribution partners who could otherwise enable entry into these markets by competitors in new and innovative ways.” 

This comes after the Washington federal court in August ruled that Google had violated anti-trust laws in the country. In a 277-page ruling in August, Amit Mehta, a US District Judge, highlighted that the tech giant is monopolistic and “it has acted as one to maintain its monopoly." 

The court in its ruling reportedly mentioned that for general search services, the tech giant has around 89.2 per cent share of the market for general search services. Further, it increases to 94.9 per cent on mobile devices. 

In its defense, Google explained that its popularity comes from people choosing a search engine that works so well that it has become the go-to term for online search. Now, the trial will happen in April, when Google will have the opportunity to defend itself. 

To stop promoting its search engine to its rivals, Google should reportedly divest its Chrome and Android bases. Meanwhile, in its blog post, Google highlighted that this proposal would harm “consumers and America’s global technological leadership." 

Kent Walker, President, Global Affairs & Chief Legal Officer, Google & Alphabet, wrote in a blog post that his would “jeopardize America’s global economic and technological leadership at precisely the moment it’s needed most.” The company has mentioned that they will file their own proposal next month. Further, a broader case will be made by the company next year. 

Speaking about Google's defense, Abhivardhan, Chairperson and Managing Trustee, Indian Society of Artificial Intelligence and Law, said that Google’s defense of its dominance, claiming that breaking up the company would harm the market, is similar to the argument made by TikTok when facing a potential ban in India. “Despite concerns, the Indian economy continued to function well, particularly the consumer and influencer economies. This indicates that the economy can thrive without the overwhelming presence of one company,” added Abhivardhan.

Read: OpenAI Introduces ChatGPT Search, Sparking New Battle with Google

CCI Action Against Google

So, can we expect a similar case in India? Experts indicate that the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has already addressed Google’s dominance with Android, mandating changes in how Google operates within the mobile ecosystem. 

In October 2022, a monetary penalty of Rs. 936.44 crore was imposed by the CCI on Google for anti-competitive practices with regards to its PlayStore policies. This was with regards to Google Play’s store policies that make it mandatory to use Google Play's Billing System (GPBS) for certain in-app purchases and receiving payments for apps. The commission also found out that Google blocked several rival UPI apps from being effective payment options on the Play Store. The commission, in its investigation, found out that Google used the “intent flow” method, which makes payments faster and easier. This is as compared to “collect flow” that is used by other companies. Since then, Google has updated its policy and allowed other users to use the “intent flow” method. 

Now, the question that comes is that with OpenAI coming to the picture with its own search engine, can we expect more competition for Google? 

Google's Advertising Strength: A Major Hurdle for OpenAI

Experts indicate that while this could potentially serve as an alternative to Google, there are challenges involved. OpenAI already uses a search engine-like function through its AI models, but breaking Google’s monopoly would be difficult due to the economic and scaling costs, add experts. 

“While OpenAI's models may outperform Google’s Gemini in some areas, the real challenge lies in understanding and integrating the advertising market,” said Abhivardhan. 

For instance, OpenAI has had issues with using advertisements as citations in its search results, which undermines the integrity of search results, added Abhivardhan. Google, for one, is very strong in its advertising game. The net advertisement revenue of Google India in FY 24 was Rs 2,743 crore. This was an 18 per cent increase from the last year. Amid increasing scrutiny on tech giants, it will be interesting to note how Google fares in the long run.