Antitrust watchdogs have been on Google’s neck after it was established as an illegal monopoly in the search landscape. As part of the regulation process, US antitrust officials have proposed that the company be forced to sell its Chrome browser to create an even playing field for its competitors.
While the issue is still in trial, OpenAI has blatantly expressed interest in acquiring Chrome from Google if the US Department of Justice forces the company to sell the browser. “Yes, we would, as would many other parties,” ChatGPT’s lead added.
Speaking in court earlier this week, OpenAI’s ChatGPT chief Nick Turley indicated that integrating Chrome into ChatGPT would give users a “really incredible experience” (via Bloomberg).
The ChatGPT head further indicated that the acquisition of Chrome would allow OpenAI to introduce users to an “AI-first experience.” Turley expressed OpenAI’s interest in Chrome during Google’s ongoing antitrust trial.
According to the ChatGPT lead:
“Currently, OpenAI’s chatbot, ChatGPT, has an extension in Google’s Chrome browser available for users to download. But having Chrome be more deeply integrated into OpenAI would allow for a better product.”
To that end, the court is expected to decide what changes Google must make to its business by August 2025, after it was established as an illegal monopoly in search last year.
ChatGPT has the numbers but still struggles with distribution
While ChatGPT is arguably the world’s most popular AI platform with approximately 800 million weekly active users, OpenAI admits distribution is its major issue. For more context, ChatGPT’s daily visits exceeded Copilot’s monthly visits in February 2025.
The AI firm already got into a deal with Apple to integrate ChatGPT into the iPhone. However, the company is yet to reach common ground with Android smartphone manufacturers about a similar deal.
Google admitted that it started paying Samsung in January to pre-install Gemini AI on its phones. While a Google spokesman indicated that the deal wasn’t exclusive, OpenAI’s ChatGPT lead suggested that the company struggled to scale such heights in negotiations:
“It was not a lack of trying. We never got to a point where we could discuss concrete terms.”
Turley expressed concerns about being shut out by tech giants like Google, “who control the access points for how people discover products, including our product.” “People discover via a browser or via an app store”, ChatGPT’s lead added. “Real choice drives competition. Users should be able to pick.”
The executive further revealed that OpenAI attempted to strike a deal with Google to bring its search engine to ChatGPT, though it was shot down. It’s worth noting that ChatGPT leverages Microsoft’s Bing for search.
According to an email sent to Google by OpenAI:
“We believe having multiple partners, and in particular Google’s API, would enable us to provide a better product to users.”
Reports suggest that Google turned down OpenAI’s deal because it would include many of its competitors. Interestingly, OpenAI has since launched its own AI-powered search engine to take on Google and Bing, ChatGPT search. While it first shipped as a paywalled ChatGPT feature, OpenAI recently made it available for free users, too.
To that end, Google plans to appeal the ruling that deemed it an illegal monopoly in search. However, the company will have until the ongoing antitrust case is concluded and the court gives a directive on the changes that should be made in this business model.
