Google reshapes Search; EU probes data

Google is changing how Search looks in Chrome just as European regulators move to prise open the data underneath it. (blog.google) On April 16, Google said that in AI Mode on Chrome desktop, clicking a link now opens the webpage next to the AI panel instead of replacing it. The same update adds a “plus” menu that lets users pull recent tabs, images and PDF files into an AI Mode query on desktop and mobile. (blog.google) The European Commission also said on April 16 that it had sent Alphabet preliminary findings under the Digital Markets Act, with proposed measures requiring Google to share ranking, query, click and view data with third-party search engines on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms. The consultation opened on April 16 and runs until May 1 at 23:59 Central European Summer Time. (digital-markets-act.ec.europa.eu 1) (digital-markets-act.ec.europa.eu 2) AI Mode is Google’s conversational Search interface: users type a question, get an AI-written answer, then keep asking follow-ups. The new split view keeps the cited webpage visible beside the answer, which lets Google present AI summaries and standard web pages at the same time. (blog.google 1) (blog.google 2) The Commission’s case is about a different layer of search: the logs and signals that help a search engine learn what users asked, what results ranked where, and what people clicked. Under Article 6(11) of the Digital Markets Act, gatekeepers that run search engines must share anonymised ranking, query, click and view data with other search engines on FRAND terms. (digital-markets-act.ec.europa.eu) Brussels said the proposed measures cover who can get the data, what data Google must share, how often it must be shared, how personal data must be anonymised, and how prices would be set. The consultation page says companies providing online search engine services, including AI chatbots with search functionality, are among the directly affected groups the Commission wants to hear from. (digital-markets-act.ec.europa.eu 1) (digital-markets-act.ec.europa.eu 2) Google framed its Chrome update as a way to reduce “tab hopping” and keep people in context while they compare sites or ask follow-up questions about a page they are viewing. The company said users can combine multiple tabs with files and images in one prompt, which pushes Search closer to a browser assistant that works across whatever is already open. (blog.google) The Commission framed its move as a competition remedy. Its April 16 notice said the goal is to help third-party search engines “optimise their search services and contest Google Search’s position,” while still requiring anonymisation of personal data. (digital-markets-act.ec.europa.eu) Those two actions land in the same week but pull on different parts of Google’s advantage: one redesigns the user-facing search experience inside Chrome, and the other tests how much of Google’s search exhaust rivals should be allowed to use. By May 1, the public record in Brussels will show how competitors, publishers and Google want that balance drawn. (blog.google) (digital-markets-act.ec.europa.eu)