The EU is set to compel Google to make Android accessible to ChatGPT and Claude as part of the Digital Markets Act.
The European Commission is set to inform Google on the necessary steps to open Android to competing AI assistants, intensifying a regulatory clash that will influence whether artificial intelligence evolves into a significant platform lock-in or becomes the first to break away before it fully establishes itself. EU regulators plan to outline what Alphabet must do to provide OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Anthropic’s Claude with access to the same Android functionalities that Google keeps exclusive to Gemini, such as voice activation, system-wide search integration, and the ability to work with other Android applications, as reported by Bloomberg on Wednesday. These draft findings are part of specification procedures initiated under the Digital Markets Act in January and come at a crucial time as Google is finalizing Gemini's takeover of the Android assistant across more than two billion devices globally.
Google has expressed concerns that these measures might "compromise user privacy, security, and innovation." The Commission asserts that a company with control over approximately 65% of Europe’s mobile operating system market cannot unilaterally decide which AI can interact with its devices.
Two separate proceedings, each with a different deadline, were initiated by the Commission on January 27, 2026. The first, under Article 6(7), pertains to interoperability: Google is required to provide third-party AI developers with “free and effective interoperability” to the Android hardware and software features utilized by Gemini. The second, under Article 6(11), deals with data sharing: Google must share anonymized search ranking, query, click, and view data with competing search engines and, importantly, with AI chatbot providers on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory terms.
On April 16, the Commission specified what Google must do to share search data with competitors, releasing preliminary findings in a 29-page specification document that details the required data flow, anonymization processes, pricing guidelines, and the auditing system that will manage this data. A public consultation on these measures will continue until May 1. The interoperability proceedings concerning Android, tracked separately as case DMA.100220, are progressing on a similar timeline. Bloomberg indicated that the Commission’s draft findings regarding this matter are imminent, with a final binding decision required by July 27, 2026.
In January, Henna Virkkunen, the EU’s Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security, and Democracy, announced these proceedings, while Teresa Ribera, the Commission’s competition chief, clearly stated the rationale: “We aim to maximize the potential and benefits of this significant technological shift by ensuring that the playing field remains open and fair, rather than skewed in favor of a select few.”
The interoperability matter carries more significant implications than the data-sharing issue. While sharing search data is crucial for commercial reasons, interoperability pertains more to market positioning. Currently, if a user downloads ChatGPT or Claude on an Android device, they receive an app. In contrast, Gemini serves as an integrated operating system feature. Gemini can be activated by pressing the power button or saying “Hey Google,” allowing it to read the screen, interact with other applications, and access core system functions unavailable to third-party assistants. The DMA’s Article 6(7) prohibits this kind of asymmetry if Google employs it to favor its own services.
The Commission plans to clarify how Google must provide rival AI providers with equally effective access to those functionalities. This may involve letting users select ChatGPT or Claude as the default system assistant, granting third-party AI services equal access to voice activation and continuous listening capabilities, and allowing integration with Gmail, Calendar, and other Google applications in the same manner as Gemini’s native functions. This distinction separates being merely an app from being the intelligence layer of the device.
Google contends that “Android is open by design,” noting that users can download any AI app from the Play Store. The Commission implicitly counters that availability does not equate to access. An AI assistant that cannot be activated by voice, cannot read screen content, and is unable to interact with the operating system's essential applications is not competing fairly, despite its availability for download.
The timing of these developments appears deliberate. Google postponed the complete transition from Google Assistant to Gemini on Android from 2025 to 2026, aiming to shut down the Assistant on mobile by March 2026, coinciding with the start of the regulatory proceedings. As Google finalizes Gemini’s role as the default AI experience on all Android devices, the Commission is concurrently defining the conditions under which competitors must be allowed to hold that same position. The two processes are on a collision course, with a binding decision expected in July while Gemini’s integration deepens with each software update.
The broader context of DMA enforcement adds additional pressure. In 2024, the Commission found Google in violation of DMA requirements concerning search self-preferencing and has initiated separate non-compliance proceedings regarding the Play Store’s anti-steering regulations. The competitive issues raised by Google’s AI partnerships, including the investigation by the UK's Competition and Markets Authority concerning Google’s
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