Who Will Own Chrome if Google Loses the Fight?
Published On: August 18, 2025
Google’s dominance over online search and advertising has brought its flagship browser Chrome into the crosshairs of US regulators. A federal judge is expected to rule by the end of this month on whether the company must divest Chrome, a move that could reshape the internet’s most widely used gateway.
The Justice Department has pushed for Chrome’s divestiture after courts found Google illegally maintained monopolies in both search and open-web digital advertising.
Competitors line up with multibillion-dollar offers
Several companies have already expressed interest in acquiring the browser, which has more than three billion users worldwide.
- Search.com, a division of Public Good recently acquired by Ad.com, confirmed a $35 billion bid backed by JP Morgan and private equity firms. Executives said they would use the browser to scale adoption of their AI search product while pledging to maintain free access
- Perplexity, the AI search startup valued at $18 billion, has submitted a $34.5 billion offer despite its size. The San Francisco company, which launched its AI-native Comet browser in July, said it would keep Chrome’s code open source and retain Google as the default search engine, though users could switch providers
- OpenAI has signaled interest as well. During April’s antitrust hearing, executives testified they would consider a purchase if Chrome became available. CEO Sam Altman later told reporters the company “should take a look at it” if Google is forced to sell
Google pushes back
Google still argues it is not a monopoly and has vowed to appeal the rulings. The company argues that divesting Chrome would harm users, warning in a May blog post that stripping the browser away from its ecosystem could leave “billions of people” vulnerable to cyberattacks and render the product obsolete.
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