Google is contesting a UK plan to let qualifying AI assistants appear on default search choice screens, challenging a proposal the regulator says could increase competition on Chrome and Android.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) published responses to its proposal on Oct. 26. The agency designated Google as having strategic market status in UK general search and search advertising in October 2025, allowing it to consider requirements governing the company's conduct.
Under the proposal, users would encounter a screen they cannot skip when setting up a qualifying new Android device or Chrome installation. Qualifying existing Chrome browsers would show it at the first major update after the requirement fully takes effect. Later annual prompts would be skippable.
AI assistants could appear if they meet the proposed general search, technical and security criteria. No AI assistant has been confirmed as eligible under the proposal. The CMA's draft would have Google assess applicants every six months and report its decisions to the regulator.
Google argues that AI assistants fall outside the search activity covered by its designation. It also says including them could displace rival search engines from the screen and reduce traffic sent to website publishers. Those effects are Google's claims, not findings by the CMA.
OpenAI supports allowing assistants to qualify but objects to giving Google discretion over applications from potential competitors. It has called for clearer assessment rules and prompt CMA oversight of Google's decisions.
The number of visible places is another point of contention. If more than 12 providers qualify, the CMA expects five to be selected by popularity and seven at random, with their display order randomized. Users could also view and choose eligible providers beyond those 12 places.
For the first six months after the requirement fully comes into force, the CMA proposes using Google Play Store downloads to measure popularity. DuckDuckGo says that measure could favor multipurpose AI apps whose downloads reflect activities beyond search. It argues that a prominent place matters, citing its own experience in France, where it says its selection rate tripled after it reached the top five.
The consultation has closed, and the requirement has not been imposed. The CMA expects to decide whether to proceed by the end of 2026.
