UK regulator would put AI assistants on Google's choice screens
The Competition and Markets Authority proposed that assistants meeting Google's technical and security criteria sit alongside search engines, with consultation open until 9 October.
Britain's Competition and Markets Authority proposed on Wednesday that Google show Android and Chrome users a choice of search providers on first setup, and that AI assistants be allowed onto those screens. Assistants that meet Google's technical and security criteria could sit alongside search engines under the proposals.
The proposals would also prompt users once a year to pick a default, and would require search providers to attribute publisher content so readers can reach the source material. Reuters and Engadget both reported the package on Wednesday.
Sarah Cardell, the authority's chief executive, said the way people search for information online is changing. She said the regulator was responding to the rise of AI assistants, which people increasingly use as a search service but which Google's choice screens do not carry.
Assistants would have to meet Google's own technical and security criteria to appear on the screens. Reuters named ChatGPT and Perplexity as examples of the services at issue. The authority has not said how it would test whether Google applies those criteria fairly.
Consultation runs until 9 October, and the authority is expected to make a final decision by the end of the year. Neither account says when any requirement would take effect. Google's response is not in either report, and the company has not published one.