New court filings reveal Google is paying billions to make Gemini the default AI assistant on Samsung, Motorola, AT&T, and Verizon devices.

It’s a power move that ensures Google’s flagship LLM will be the first tap for millions of mobile users – not ChatGPT, Perplexity, and others.

But the DOJ isn’t letting it slide. Regulators are pushing to ban those deals and force Google to compete on user choice, not preloaded advantage.

The Bigger Story

The Gemini payouts are now at the center of the DOJ’s case against Google’s search monopoly.

Last year, a judge ruled that Google illegally protected its empire by paying to be the default. Now prosecutors argue the Gemini deals are the same playbook – just rewound for the AI era.

Internal docs show that Google offered Samsung alone a $1B+ deal to make Gemini the out-of-the-box assistant.  Meanwhile, smaller carriers got revenue-share carrots to shut out rivals.

The DOJ’s ask:

• Ban all paid-default deals for a decade
• Force Android devices to offer choice screens for AI assistants.
• If that’s not enough? Spin off Chrome.

🌶️ Hot take: the final ruling, expected later this year, could redraw the entire AI go-to-market map.

Why You Should Care

To me, this story is really about the power of being the default.

Google’s biggest competitive advantage wasn’t just having better products. It was being the first thing users touched.

Search bars baked into Safari. Preloads on Android. Default settings in Firefox. Most people didn’t consciously choose Google. They just stuck with what was handed to them.

Now the same dynamic is playing out in AI.

It’s not just about building the best model – it’s about owning the starting point: the setup screen, the voice prompt, the first tap.

Distribution really is the battlefield right now 🤔

Imagine you could create the content your sellers need for every one of their competitive deals – without lifting a finger. 

With Klue, now you can.

Introducing Deal Tips!

Deal Tips proactively support sellers in their most competitive deals by sending them personalized, actionable content to their inbox with recommendations on what they should do next.

No spam.

No endless emails triggered every time a competitor was mentioned on a call.

Just a Deal Tip for your most competitive situations.

Here’s what you missed on the new Compete Community discussion board 👇

• Clara Smyth shared 6 ‘Ask Klue’ prompts you can teach your sellers to use for better results.
  
  
• Veronica Batista Bernard shared how updating battlecard layouts boosted seller engagement — and why building cards is always an ongoing process.
  
  
• Sharon Maxfield & Dustin Ray shared tips for setting up Klue <> Gong integrations
  
  
• Jenn Delconte kicked off a thread asking what you’re hoping to learn, see, or experience at Klue’s Compete Week 2025.

 
📸 Check out photos from our latest IRL events in London, Boston, and Toronto

 🔎 PS. You don’t have to be a ‘prompt engineer’ 😆 to use the Community search bar to find what you need. Just type in a topic and browse past event recordings, blogs, forum discussions, and more. Try it now with: “win-loss.”