Samsung and Google under investigation by the EU for anti-competitive practice over AI deal

The EU antitrust regulators are investigating a deal between Samsung and Google to know if it suppresses rival chatbots on Galaxy phones.

The EU antitrust regulators are gathering information about the deal to better understand the impact it has on competing AI and chatbot products. The European Union will open a case against Samsung and Google if it determines the deal is anti-competitive.

The deal between Samsung and Google gave Samsung access to Gemini Pro and Imagen 2 text-to-image technology. The most significant part of the deal is that Samsung now has access to the Gemini Nano model.

Gemini Nano is an on-device model of the Gemini and the smallest of all Gemini models. This model can run on-device allowing access to AI features without internet connection. Google DeepMind says it is its most efficient model for on-device tasks.

Gemini Nano is powered by a new system-level capability named Android AICore. AICore was introduced in the Android 14 and provides access to foundation models for on-device execution.

Android AICore is currently available in production on the Google Pixel 8 Pro and Samsung flagship devices, starting with the S24 Series.

The regulators sent out an 8-page questionnaire to competitors requesting to know if they have tried to reach a similar deal with Samsung in the past and got rejected.

One of the latest smartphones from Samsung integrated with Gemini is the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6. The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 is $1,099.99 on Amazon.com with a $200 Amazon gift card and a 90-day subscription to Amazon Music in a promotional offer. This device is scheduled for release on July 24 but pre-order is already on.