OpenAI Wants to Buy Google's Chrome Browser

[MacRumors]

OpenAI would consider purchasing the Chrome browser if Google is forced to sell it as a remedy for anticompetitive search practices, ChatGPT product lead Nick Turley said today.

According to The Information, Turley provided the detail as part of a court hearing that will determine remedies to address Google's antitrust violations.

The United States Department of Justice wants Google to divest Chrome after the DoJ won an antitrust lawsuit against Google last year. The court decided that Google has an illegal monopoly on search, and the judge overseeing the case is now deciding on the punishment (or remedies) that Google will face as a result.

The DoJ pointed to OpenAI as company that's growth has been hampered by Google's hold on search. Last year, OpenAI asked Google for access to search data to bolster SearchGPT, but Google refused.

Along with potentially being forced to sell Chrome, Google could be forced to allow rivals to access its search data. Turley said that access to Google's real-time data would allow OpenAI to "build a better product faster."

Google is also likely to be prohibited from entering into search related deals with Apple and other companies. Google has long paid Apple billions of dollars per year to be the default Safari search engine, giving Google a significant advantage in the search market.

The DoJ is also recommending that Google divest Android, but only if the other proposed remedies are not effective at keeping Google from "improperly leveraging" the operating system, or if Google tries to circumvent the other requirements put in place.

During his testimony, Turley also said that OpenAI offered to pay Apple a portion of the revenue generated by the Siri ChatGPT integration, but it is not clear if Apple has accepted payment, and prior reports suggested that it was a deal that does not see Apple paying OpenAI, or OpenAI paying Apple.

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Article Link: OpenAI Wants to Buy Google's Chrome Browser

 

[Think|Different]

This is wild. I don’t really mess with Google too much anymore, beyond a burner GMAIL account, but I really don’t see the ‘issue’ of them having their own (bloated) web browser.

 

[sunapple]

I have gut feeling nothing will change.

 

[GMShadow]

Chrome being sold to OpenAI would be like herpes merging with HIV. No one is going to like the end result.

 

[timber]

Taking Chrome from Google to promote competition in search and give it to the probable "search of the future" does seem an odd choice.
Like jumping from the pan to the fire.

 

[n-evo]

Chrome being sold off to some other big tech company is pretty much pointless and won’t change anything in the long run.

I think the only real solution here is if Chrome is given to a new independent foundation where a consortium of parties (as many as are willing) are able to contribute but where none actually own the browser, and is made completely open source and stripped from any commercial additions. So I guess basically Chromium becoming the default Chrome?

I just don’t really see where that would leave other commercial forks like Edge. Kinda weird if those were continued allowed to exist because it can lead to a similar situation.

 

[Spock]

So it goes from not trusting one company to not trusting another.

 

[LogicalApex]

This is wild. I don’t really mess with Google too much anymore, beyond a burner GMAIL account, but I really don’t see the ‘issue’ of them having their own (bloated) web browser.

The reasoning on removing the browser from Google is sound. Just as it was sound to pull it from Microsoft. The failure is allowing Google to basically copy MS and it going unchecked for as long as it has.

OpenAI buying Chrome would be a disaster too. As they would use it to build a similar monopoly in AI or whatever by harvesting user data.

There needs to be better rules around browsers in general. Especially since the browser space is looking naturally monopolistic.

 

[Plutonius]

I doubt that Google will ever sell. Delay and litigate is how big corporations do business now.

 

[vantelimus]

I think this would be a mistake by OpenAI. Right now, AI technology is the race. If they split their attention and capital, they will fall behind. The winner in that exchange might be Google, since Google could concentrate more on AI.

 

[LogicalApex]

I doubt that Google will ever sell. Delay and litigate is how big corporations do business now.

They get 1 appeal to SCOTUS if they are ordered to do so by the judge. It is extremely rare for SCOTUS to reverse these decisions.

 

[Kottu]

I don’t understand why the DOJ wants Google to sell off Chrome. Honestly, Google has invested a lot to make Chrome what it is today. It’s the same with the EU pushing Apple to open up its technology to others. It feels like governments are only focused on challenging tech companies, while there are far more pressing issues in the world.

P.S: I don’t use Chrome.

 

[magicschoolbus]

think of all the AI they could train off of everyones google searches. It amazes me Fortune 500 companies allow you to even use Chrome. Maybe a cyber security person can chime in on why it's allowed.

 

[HouseLannister]

I wonder how this will change Android. Will it not have a browser installed until you set up your phone with a browser choice? Will this cause the DoJ case against Apple to force Apple to do the same instead of forcing Safari on every user? Granted, Apple is not a search company, so they probably can keep Safari, but the DoJ is not going to want to have Apple have clear advantages over Android that could destroy the duopoly and give Apple a pure monopoly in the future.

 

[DocMultimedia]

They get 1 appeal to SCOTUS if they are ordered to do so by the judge. It is extremely rare for SCOTUS to reverse these decisions.

Lately some in charge don't care what SCOTUS thinks, so why should Google? Back in my day... People respected laws. Pepperidge Farms remembers. 😉

 

[bluecoast]

I don’t get this. I guess they would be selling the brand name and the installed base?

I mean google could just take the open source chromium and rebrand it?

Gemini browser by google!

 

[CapitalIdea]

OpenAI (and therefore Microsoft) taking over Chrome reminds me of dialogue from a video game I played to death:

Aht Urhgan has taken many countries under her yoke.
A ferocious nation that has even bared fangs at the Far Eastern folk.
Calling the Empire to help in our cause,
would be like freeing us from demons in return for dragon jaws.

 

[AppleTO]

I’m assuming then you wouldn’t be able to sign in with a Google account anymore. That would probably defeat the purpose for a lot of people.

I mean, they’ll just pull their proprietary account stuff out of Chrome and use the Chromium project to build a new browser, and probably call it Gemini. Result: the same browser as before.

 

[platinumaqua]

Just shut down Chrome and prevent Google from creating a new browser. Chromium project can still continue

 

[Scott6666]

Chrome being sold off to some other big tech company is pretty much pointless and won’t change anything in the long run.

I think the only real solution here is if Chrome is given to a new independent foundation where a consortium of parties (as many as are willing) are able to contribute but where none actually own the browser, and is made completely open source and stripped from any commercial additions. So I guess basically Chromium becoming the default Chrome?

I just don’t really see where that would leave other commercial forks like Edge. Kinda weird if those were continued allowed to exist because it can lead to a similar situation.

Isn’t that Mozilla?

 

[It’s always something]

I can’t imagine why this would be more attractive to OpenAI than forking off another copy of Chromium and creating their own browser. It would be far less expensive.

 

[The_Gream]

Don’t know why they don’t just make it like the fair use aspect of patents that are required for some technology to work, though I forget the term.

Just make it so Google has to offer their data at a fair and reasonable rate, as while as not out right just refusing their competition.

 

[klasma]

I hope they do, so that Chrome loses market share.

 

[AppleTO]

I can’t imagine why this would be more attractive to OpenAI than forking off another copy of Chromium and creating their own browser. It would be far less expensive.

I second that. IMO, the value of Chrome is its user base and the fact that you can sign into Google services. Beyond those services, the code is available to everyone (for free). It basically has no value.

If it was sold, you would no longer be able to sign in using your Google account and nothing you previously had would work, especially the password manager. People would just move to whatever the new browser Google releases is so they can sign back in and use all the stuff in their account.

Basically none of this makes any sense because the only code worth anything will immediately become useless.

 

[klasma]

I can’t imagine why this would be more attractive to OpenAI than forking off another copy of Chromium and creating their own browser. It would be far less expensive.

People would still use Chrome and not OpenAI’s fork. If OpenAI takes over Chrome, by default people would continue using Chrome, now under OpenAI.