Nadella also expressed concerns about emerging AI technology inadvertently reinforcing Google’s dominance. He warned that Google’s distribution advantage would persist, potentially growing even more formidable. He voiced fears that the “vicious cycle” he perceived in the market could intensify, further cementing Google’s control, especially in the content-driven AI sector.
“The distribution advantage Google has today doesn’t go away,” Nadella warned. “In fact, if anything, I worry a lot that—even in spite of my enthusiasm that there is a new angle with AI—this vicious cycle that I’m trapped in could even become even more vicious because the defaults get reinforced.”
In Nadella’s view, Google’s dominance in defaults could extend to influencing AI models’ content sources, making it even more challenging for competitors to break through in search.
Start-ups struggle with Google placement
Nadella’s testimony was a crucial component of the DOJ’s argument, aiming to demonstrate that Google’s stranglehold on the search market is so overpowering that even a corporate giant like Microsoft, with the potential for substantial investments, struggles to compete effectively.
