Google Stock Rises Despite Antitrust Ruling, AI a Factor?

Google's parent Alphabet shares rose 6% after a federal judge ruled the company can keep its Chrome browser, but must share search data with competitors. The ruling is seen as a victory for Google, which is facing new rivals in AI-based internet search. Judge Amit Mehta's decision also didn't bar Google from making payments to third parties for default browser placement. The ruling is expected to be appealed.

Alphabet Inc.'s (GOOGL.O) shares rose 6% after a federal judge ruled that the company can keep its Chrome browser but must share search data with competitors. The ruling, handed down by U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta, is seen as a victory for Google, which has been facing increasing scrutiny over its market dominance in internet search and related advertising.

The ruling comes nearly a year after Mehta found that Google held an illegal monopoly in its core market of internet search. In his latest decision, Mehta rejected the U.S. Department of Justice's bid to force Google to sell off its Chrome browser and Android operating system but ordered the company to share search data with competitors to open up competition in the online search market [1][2][3][4].

Google CEO Sundar Pichai expressed concerns during the trial that the data-sharing measures could enable competitors to reverse-engineer its technology. However, Mehta's ruling did not bar Google from making payments to third parties for default browser placement, which could potentially continue to boost Google's search revenue [1][2].

The ruling is expected to be appealed, meaning any remedies could take years to be implemented. Google is also facing other antitrust litigation, including a separate case brought by the Justice Department where a judge found the company holds illegal monopolies in online advertising technology [1][2].

The ruling highlights the ongoing antitrust battle against Big Tech firms in the U.S., which began during President Donald Trump's first term and includes cases against Meta Platforms (META.O), Amazon (AMZN.O), and Apple (AAPL.O) [1][2].

References:
[1] https://www.cnbc.com/2025/09/02/google-antitrust-search-ruling.html
[2] https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/us-judge-orders-google-share-search-data-with-competitors-2025-09-02/
[3] https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/us-judge-orders-google-share-202024861.html
[4] https://seekingalpha.com/news/4491426-google-not-required-to-sell-chrome-in-antitrust-remedy-ruling-shares-jump