Alphabet Inc.’s Google would be forced to unwind its partnership with artificial intelligence startup Anthropic if a federal judge accepts the US Justice Department’s proposal to resolve a landmark antitrust case over online search.
The Justice Department and a group of attorneys general recommended in a court filing Wednesday that Google be barred from acquiring, investing in or collaborating with any company that controls where consumers search for information, including query-based AI products. The provision is intended to apply to Google’s Anthropic investment, according to people familiar with the Justice Department’s thinking who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private information.
The Justice Department’s proposals are part of a broader effort to curb Google’s alleged monopoly over online search. In the court filing, antitrust enforcers said Google must divest Chrome, citing a judge’s earlier ruling that the browser “fortified” the company’s dominance.
Google declined to comment on the specific provision, pointing to a blog post it issued Thursday that criticized the Justice Department’s proposal. The blog post said the remedy would “chill” Google’s investment in artificial intelligence and “jeopardize America’s global economic and technological leadership at precisely the moment it’s needed most.”
Anthropic and the Justice Department declined to comment.
Google pledged to invest US$2 billion ($2.69 billion) in Anthropic last year. As part of the deal, Google gained non-voting shares and certain consultation rights on significant business issues. Prior to the financing, Google also signed a major cloud agreement with Anthropic.
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Anthropic also received a US$4 billion investment from Amazon.com Inc. Both deals received scrutiny from regulators who have worried that Big Tech is using large investments and cloud computing partnerships to dominate the emerging AI sector.
The UK’s antitrust watchdog previously looked into Google’s Anthropic deal and concluded earlier this week that it didn’t warrant further review.
