Google has ‘competitive edge’ in GenAI: Microsoft tells EU

AI race: Google has a competitive edge in generative artificial intelligence on the back of its cluster of data and AI-optimised semiconductors, according to Microsoft.

The comment, which highlights the rivalry between the two firms, was made in response to a European Union Commission consultation in January on the competitive landscape in GenAI.

Both Google and Microsoft have forayed into the artificial intelligence technology which can generate responses to prompts, from coding to letters.

OpenAI, which was the first to launch its GenAI Large Language Model (LLM) for public access with ChatGPT, is backed by Microsoft. The technology company, best known for its Windows operating system (OS), also has its own LLM - Microsoft Co-pilot. 

Google, which says it has been working on AI since 2013, launched its GenAI foray - Bard - in 2023. The rebranded product, known as Gemini, has raised inhibitions on false information and fake news.

"Today, only one company - Google - is vertically integrated in a manner that provides it with strength and independence at every AI layer from chips to a thriving mobile app store. Everyone else must rely on partnerships to innovate and compete," Microsoft said in its report to the Commission.

Microsoft also alleged that Google's self-supply AI semiconductors will provide a competitive advantage to the search engine giant for years ahead.

Google’s ownership of large sets of data from Google Search Index and YouTube will allow for it to model its GenAI, Gemini.

"YouTube provides an unparalleled set of video content; it hosts an estimated 14 billion videos. Google has access to such content; but other AI developers do not," Microsoft said.

AI-powered voice assistants like Google Assistant and Siri by Apple also provide a favourable advantage to the two companies. 

"They are well positioned to evolve and leverage their respective existing voice assistants into leadership positions in generative AI. New entrants and competitors of Google and Apple will not enjoy the same advantages," Microsoft said.

Microsoft, which has made investments of over $10 billion in OpenAI, faces ire from EU antitrust regulators for its other investments. Seeking to ward off regulatory concerns around Big Tech and start-up alliances, it said, "All of these start-ups relied on different forms of investments and partnerships that enabled them to enter and expand in the space." 

This was in reference to American AI startup Anthropic, founded by former members of OpenAI.  Google and Amazon have also made investments in Anthropic.

Microsoft was also in focus for investing 15 million euros in France's Mistral,  and Canada's Cohere with Salesforce and Nvidia as investors.

"Encouraging pro-competitive partnerships in the AI space is an effective way to prevent companies from becoming vertically integrated in a manner that would result in an anticompetitive advantage," Microsoft said.

(With Reuters Inputs)