EU’s Google Fine May Decide Who Controls AI Search in Europe

May 26, 2026 01:08 PM IST | Written by Mithun MK | Edited by Vaibhav Jha

The European Union (EU) is preparing to impose its biggest Digital Markets Act (DMA) penalty yet, with Google reportedly facing a high triple-digit million euro fine over how it treats rivals in search.

Germany’s Handelsblatt reported that the European Commission is nearing a decision against Alphabet-owned Google, Reuters reported. The case goes back to a March 2025 investigation into whether Google gives its own services favorable treatment in search results, in violation of the DMA, the EU’s law is meant to curb the power of large digital gatekeepers.

Google Search is no longer just a list of links. The company is folding AI-generated answers, Gemini-linked features and agentic tools into the search experience. At Google I/O 2026, the company announced a wider AI push across Search, agents and consumer products, placing Gemini deeper into how users discover and act on information online.

If Google controls the search box, the ranking layer, the advertising layer and the AI answer layer, the question is no longer only whether rival shopping, travel or local services get visibility. It is also whether rival AI search engines and chatbots can compete with Google’s distribution and data advantage.

In April, the European Commission proposed that Google should allow third-party search engines, including AI-powered chatbots with search functions, access to search data such as ranking, query, click and view data on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms. Brussels said the aim was to let rival search engines optimise their services and contest Google Search’s position.

Google has opposed the proposal, arguing that such access could expose sensitive user search data and raise privacy risks. Reuters reported that interested parties had until May 1 to respond, with a final decision expected in July.

The expected fine also lands as the EU softens parts of its AI Act rollout. Earlier this month, EU lawmakers agreed to delay key high-risk AI compliance deadlines, giving businesses more time before some obligations bite.

Europe may be slowing parts of AI-specific compliance for companies, but it is not stepping back from enforcement against Big Tech. Instead, it appears to be separating two questions, how quickly AI systems should be regulated, and whether dominant platforms can use existing control over search, data and distribution to shape the next AI market. While for Google, the immediate fight is about search, for Europe, it is increasingly about who gets to build the default gateways to AI.

Also Read: EU Dilutes AI Act, Extends High-Risk System Deadline to 2027

Authors

Mithun MK
Mithun MK is a Special Correspondent at AI FrontPage. He brings over six years of investigative reporting on technology, surveillance, digital rights, and governance at The News Minute and The New Indian Express. He is trained in cross-border investigative methods with OCCRP, alongside reporters from Southeast Asia, and brings both reporting depth and technical fluency to AI FrontPage's coverage of the global AI industry.
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Vaibhav Jha
Vaibhav Jha is an Editor and Co-founder of AI FrontPage. In his decade long career in journalism, Vaibhav has reported for publications including The Indian Express, Hindustan Times, and The New York Times, covering the intersection of technology, policy, and society. Outside work, he’s usually trying to persuade people to watch Anurag Kashyap films.
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