BRUSSELS – The European Commission on Thursday issued two rules under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), requiring US tech company Google to allow rivals' access to key artificial intelligence functions on its Android operating system and share search data with competing search engines.

According to the Commission, the rules are legally binding. The first rule requires Google to offer third-party AI assistants equal access to features on Google's Android devices, so that they can fairly compete with Google's own AI services, such as Gemini.

The second rule requires Google to share Google Search data with eligible rival search engines. The Commission said such data sharing would help competing search providers develop and improve their services, fostering innovation in the digital market.

The Commission asked Google to begin sharing search data with eligible third-party search engines from January 2027, while Android users are expected to benefit from the changes from July 2027.

European Commission Executive Vice-President Teresa Ribera said in a statement that the measures would help smaller competitors, search engines, or AI assistants compete and provide diverse choices, as well as protect the user's privacy.

READ MORE: Google antitrust accord over its app store meets skeptical judge

The Commission opened specification proceedings on the two measures on Jan 27 under the DMA. Following a series of investigations and consultations with stakeholders, it adopted the final binding specification decisions.