The European Union orders Google to open the underlying permissions of the Android system to AI competitors

On July 16, local time, EU regulators issued a mandatory order to the American tech giant Google, requiring it to lift multiple restrictions on competitors' access to artificial intelligence (AI) services on the Android smartphone system. This move marks a comprehensive upgrade in the compliance review of the emerging AI industry by global antitrust regulators.

According to the ruling statement released by the European Commission on the same day, Google must ensure that external AI services enjoy "equal status" within the Android ecosystem, allowing third-party AI applications to deeply invoke system-level voice commands and cross-application operation authorizations. This ruling is legally binding, and Google has been ordered to complete the relevant system rectifications by July 2027 at the latest. Additionally, to break data monopolies and promote fair market competition, the EU also requires Google to begin sharing anonymized search engine data with competitors, including AI chatbot developers, by January 2027.

Market monitoring data shows that the Android system currently supports about 60% of smartphones operating within the EU. EU regulatory officials pointed out that as AI gradually becomes the new core entry point for digital services and the internet ecosystem, the technical integration of smartphones directly determines the commercial competitiveness of AI applications. There are widespread concerns that Google could easily leverage the vast user base and monopolistic advantages of the Android system to deeply bind its native AI services, such as Gemini, thereby unfairly suppressing independent competitors like OpenAI and Anthropic.

In response to this highly binding ruling, Google has not yet clearly stated whether it will file a judicial appeal. Kent Walker, Google's Global General Counsel, argued in a statement on the same day that the EU's mandatory intervention policy could have substantial negative impacts on the digital security of European users. Walker emphasized that allowing external developers direct access to sensitive information or search history from users' phones poses significant risks to the privacy and cybersecurity barriers that are crucial for millions of European residents.

Analysts point out that as the region with the most stringent digital economy regulations globally, the EU is accelerating the full integration of its antitrust review framework into the AI field. According to the EU's current Digital Markets Act (DMA), tech giants identified as "gatekeepers" must ensure interoperability of their core platforms and are strictly prohibited from excluding third-party digital assistant services. This stringent regulatory mechanism is currently causing significant upheaval in the tech industry in both the US and Europe. In June of this year, Apple announced the suspension of its newly upgraded Siri smart service in the European market due to a failure to reach an agreement with the EU on compliance terms; meanwhile, major AI companies are accelerating the development of independent hardware devices to seek breakthroughs, and Apple's recent lawsuit against OpenAI for "theft of trade secrets" further corroborates that the AI positioning battle surrounding the smartphone ecosystem has become increasingly intense