Google shares slide as Samsung 'weighs replacing with Microsoft Bing on phones'

Samsung shipped 261 million smartphones in 2022, according to IDC data, all running Google’s Android software.

Shares in Google-owner Alphabet tumbled following a New York Times report that Samsung has considered replacing Google with Microsoft’s Bing as the default search engine on its phones. 

Google employee’s were shocked when they learned about Samsung’s threat in March, the New York Times reported, citing internal messages. The contract between Alphabet and the world’s leading smartphone maker is under negotiation and Samsung could still stick with Google, according to the New York Times. Shares of Alphabet fell as much as 4% at one stage. 

Bing’s threat to Google’s search dominance has escalated in recent months with the addition of OpenAI’s technology to provide ChatGPT-like responses to user queries.

Google is working on several projects to update and renew its search services to avoid losing ground. Those include adding artificial intelligence features to its existing offerings, under a project named Magi, which has more than 160 people working on it, the New York Times reported.

Google is “excited about bringing new AI-powered features to search and will share more details soon”, Lara Levin, a Google spokeswoman, said in a statement. A Google representative did not comment on the company’s negotiations with Samsung. A representative from Samsung declined to comment.

Samsung shipped 261 million smartphones in 2022, according to IDC data, all running Google’s Android software. The Korean company has long-established partnerships with both Microsoft and Google, and its devices come preloaded with a library of apps and services from both, such as OneDrive and Google Maps.

Between its Samsung deal and one with Apple, which the New York Times report is valued at roughly $20bn (€18.sbn) in annual revenue, Google has commanding market share in mobile devices in much of the world.

Large language models, such as the one underpinning ChatGPT and the chatbot functionality in Microsoft’s Bing, are not new to Google. Google is also rolling out Bard, its own chatbot search assistant, though doing so at a very cautious pace. 

Bloomberg