Sundar Pichai to Mint: Pro-competitive AI, powered by deep research, is Google’s path forward
He emphasised that Google’s strategy remains “pro-competitive,” citing its open contributions to global AI development and partnerships with over 2,000 companies as evidence of its ecosystem-first mindset.
“While some ideas can convert into products right away, some take time. For instance, we spoke yesterday about text diffusion—this is one area where we’re pushing the frontiers of diffusion technology in AI in a new way,” Pichai told Mint on Wednesday.
“Down the line, it’ll make sense to bring it to products in various interesting ways. But there are more examples—Waymo is a big one where our research led to the product. Project Astra is another—and us bringing it to people as a product also lets us see how it is used by everyone, and we learn from it,” he added.
Also read: What Google Search’s chief has to say on AI—an extension, not a replacement
Challenges and checkpoints
This year marks a decade of Sundar Pichai leading Google. During his tenure, the ongoing antitrust hearings with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice (DoJ), along with the rise of OpenAI and other generative AI challengers, have posed some of the biggest threats to Google and its $2-trillion market cap—built largely on its dominance in search, advertising, and mobile devices.
Despite the noise, Pichai’s message was clear: Google’s investment in AI remains guided by a long-term lens, with a focus on innovation rather than rapid commercial wins.
“We’re committed to driving fundamental research, and you’ll see Google move aggressively to put the results of this research in the hands of the people—even if that may need some time,” Pichai said.
The 20 May Google I/O keynote, which saw AI mentioned 92 times in just two hours, was widely seen as a defining moment—possibly the first time that analysts, investors, and users seemed convinced of Google’s AI momentum.
The company had previously come under fire for failing to cash in on the transformer model it invented in 2017—technology that underpins nearly every modern large language model, including OpenAI’s ChatGPT. On Tuesday, Mint reported that cofounder Sergey Brin’s return to working full-time at the company was driven by this very gap.
Following the keynote, Google’s stock price surged from $165.01 on Tuesday to $174.09 on Wednesday—a 5.5% gain—buoyed by analyst optimism. This comes despite the stock being down over 5% in the past year, with last year’s I/O conference considered underwhelming in comparison.
By contrast, Microsoft—which has invested over $10 billion in OpenAI—has seen its share price rise more than 5% over the same period.
Digging deep on R&D
In Q1 FY25, Google allocated 15% of its revenue—or $13.6 billion—to research and development, underscoring the scale of its long-term bet.
Pichai’s framing of research as Google’s core strength was also seen as a subtle swipe at OpenAI, which built its large language models using Google’s pioneering transformer model.
“As far as antitrust investigations into Google are concerned, we have had a massive impact on the global technology ecosystem. We’ve been associated in ways with over 2,000 companies, and we invest in technology that creates innovation outside of Google. The transformer model in AI is one big example—we don’t build AI just for ourselves, and not all companies can say that,” Pichai said.
The comment comes amid increasing scrutiny of Google’s dominant position in search and advertising, and whether its AI integrations could further consolidate its market power.
Time to deliver
Industry observers now believe that Google’s ability to execute swiftly will determine its trajectory in the AI era.
“Pichai has been viewed in the industry as a top executive who had so far approached AI development with one eye on the rear-view mirror. This clearly didn’t help the company, but there’s no denying that Google has a massive number of the most talented brains in the global technology industry,” said Jayanth Kolla, partner at technology consultancy firm Convergence Catalyst.
“Given the company’s history and might, there’s no denying that Google could very well lead everyone into the AI future—when Steve Jobs turned Apple around from the brink of bankruptcy after returning in 1996, he set clear precedent for other top executives to follow,” he added.
Even as antitrust threats loom—some of which could force Google to divest parts of its business—Pichai struck a confident tone:
“Our approach has always been pro-competitive, and our success is earned purely on our merits.”
Also read: I/O 2025: Google introduces major AI upgrades to Search, brings ‘AI Mode’ to users
The author is in Mountain View, California to attend I/O 2025 on Google’s invitation.
