Google

Google Search drops local domain URLs

Google is set to begin redirecting its country-specific search domains, such as google.fr or google.co.uk, to the main global address at google.com.

The company says the move is intended to streamline user experience across different regions, with the update being gradually rolled out over the coming months.

Although users will see google.com in their browser instead of their local version, Google assures that the way Search functions will remain the same.

Some users may be prompted to re-enter their search preferences during the transition, but results will still reflect local relevance.

Since 2017, the platform has delivered the same core Search experience regardless of whether users accessed it through a country-specific address or the global one.

With this standardisation already in place, Google has concluded that separate country domains are no longer necessary.

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Justice Department pushes to curb Google monopoly

Google has pushed back against a US government proposal to break up its business, arguing that such a move would hurt consumers and reduce competition rather than enhance it.

In a court filing ahead of a remedy trial due to begin on 21 April, Google claimed the Justice Department’s plan to divest services like Chrome and Android would force users to adopt less effective alternatives.

The company stressed that consumers overwhelmingly prefer Google’s search engine and that its agreements with browser and device manufacturers do not prevent rivals from competing.

The Justice Department is asking the court to consider structural remedies, including breaking up parts of Google’s business or limiting its default search agreements, to curb what it deems monopolistic behaviour.

The agency originally proposed more aggressive action, such as divesting Google’s AI investments, but later backed down, citing concerns over unintended consequences in the fast-evolving AI sector.

Google has offered alternative remedies, including more flexibility for Android manufacturers to preload or set other search engines as default, without fully removing its own search partnerships.

A 15-day hearing will begin later this month, with both sides set to present evidence and call high-profile witnesses. Google’s CEO Sundar Pichai and Apple’s senior VP of services are among the 20 witnesses listed by the tech giant.

The Justice Department plans to call 19 witnesses, including executives from OpenAI, DuckDuckGo and Microsoft, as it argues for stronger measures to level the playing field in internet search.

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Quantum breakthrough could be just years away

Most quantum professionals believe that quantum utility — the point at which quantum computers outperform classical machines in solving real-world problems — could be reached within the next decade.

According to a new survey by Economist Impact, 83% of global experts expect quantum utility to arrive in ten years or less, with one-third predicting it will happen in as little as one to five years.

Optimism aligns with some industry roadmaps, such as Finnish startup IQM, which is targeting quantum utility as early as next year.

However, there’s still little consensus on the timeline. While Google’s CEO Sundar Pichai recently suggested practically useful quantum computers could be five to ten years away, Nvidia’s Jensen Huang believes it may take at least 15 years — a remark that briefly shook confidence in quantum stocks.

Industry confusion over terms like ‘quantum utility,’ ‘advantage,’ and ‘supremacy’ only adds to the uncertainty, highlighting the need for clearer communication and better public understanding.

Despite the buzz, major challenges remain. Over 80% of professionals cite technical barriers, especially error correction, as a major hurdle.

A further 75% point to a lack of skilled talent in the field. While misconceptions about quantum computing are seen as slowing progress, the real bottlenecks lie in engineering and workforce development.

If these can be overcome, quantum computing could revolutionise sectors from pharmaceuticals and materials science to finance and cybersecurity — with profound implications, both promising and perilous.

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Crypto ads on Google must meet MiCA standards

Google will begin enforcing a new crypto advertising policy in Europe on 23 April. Exchanges and wallet providers will be required to be licensed under the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) or Crypto Asset Service Provider (CASP) frameworks.

Advertisers must also meet local legal requirements and be certified by Google to promote crypto-related services in the region.

The change follows the implementation of MiCA in December 2024, the EU’s first comprehensive regulatory framework for digital assets. Some see Google’s move as beneficial for investor protection, while others warn it may create compliance gaps and higher barriers for smaller firms.

Bitget’s Hon Ng said the rules could reduce scams but warned smaller firms may struggle with MiCA’s requirements. National licensing timelines may also differ, risking inconsistent enforcement.

Others, like Mattan Erder from Orbs, argue the policy is more about shielding Google from legal risk than protecting investors. He noted that if registration becomes too costly or complex, it may push smaller crypto firms out of the market altogether.

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Google rolls out AI to improve US power grid connections

Google has announced a partnership with PJM Interconnection, the largest electricity grid operator in North America, to deploy AI aimed at reducing delays in connecting new power sources to the grid. The move comes as energy demand surges due to the expansion of data centres required for AI development.

Wait times for connecting renewable and traditional energy sources, such as wind, solar and gas, have reached record levels, increasing the risk of blackouts and rising energy costs in the US. Google’s AI technology, developed alongside Alphabet-backed Tapestry, will streamline and automate key planning processes traditionally handled manually by grid operators.

Initial deployment will focus on automating tasks like assessing project viability, which are currently time-consuming. Over time, the project aims to create a digital model of PJM’s grid, similar to Google Maps, allowing planners to view layered data and make faster, more informed decisions.

While it is too early to quantify exactly how much time will be saved, the collaboration is expected to gradually improve planning efficiency. PJM’s grid serves 67 million people, including the world’s largest data centre hub in northern Virginia, making this a critical step toward modernising the energy infrastructure needed to support the AI era.

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Google offers steep discounts to US federal agencies

Google is offering a 71% discount on its business apps package to US federal agencies as part of a new agreement with the General Services Administration (GSA).

The move is aimed at capitalising on President Trump’s cost-cutting efforts, which include reducing government contracts. If fully adopted by federal agencies, the deal could save up to $2 billion.

The pricing structure will now be based on government-wide usage, rather than the individual agency agreements that previously offered smaller discounts. The GSA views the agreement as part of its broader strategy to create cost savings for the federal government.

A shift like this could help Google expand its presence in the government sector, where Microsoft currently holds an 85% market share.

As part of its push, Google has enhanced its Workspace suite with AI-driven features from its Gemini model. The platform has already been used by some government entities, including the US Air Force’s Air Force Research Laboratory, since 2021.

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Google unveils new AI agent toolkit

This week at Google Cloud Next in Las Vegas, Google revealed its latest push into ‘agentic AI’. A software designed to act independently, perform tasks, and communicate with other digital systems.

Central to this effort is the Agent Development Kit (ADK), an open-source toolkit said to let developers build AI agents in under 100 lines of code.

Instead of requiring complex systems, the ADK includes pre-built connectors and a so-called ‘agent garden’ to streamline integration with data platforms like BigQuery and AlloyDB.

Google also introduced a new Agent2Agent (A2A) protocol, aimed at enabling cooperation between agents from different vendors. With over 50 partners, including Accenture, SAP and Salesforce, already involved, the company hopes to establish a shared standard for AI interaction.

Powering these tools is Google’s latest AI chip, Ironwood, a seventh-generation TPU promising tenfold performance gains over earlier models. These chips, designed for use with advanced models like Gemini 2.5, reflect Google’s ambition to dominate AI infrastructure.

Despite the buzz, analysts caution that the hype around AI agents may outpace their actual utility. While vendors like Microsoft, Salesforce and Workday push agentic AI to boost revenue, in some cases even replacing staff, experts argue that current models still fall short of real human-like intelligence.

Instead of widespread adoption, businesses are expected to focus more on managing costs and complexity, especially as economic uncertainty grows. Without strong oversight, these tools risk becoming costly, unpredictable, and difficult to scale.

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Google pushes AI limits with Ironwood

Google has announced Ironwood, its latest and most advanced AI processor, marking the seventh generation of its custom Tensor Processing Unit (TPU) architecture.

Designed specifically for the growing demands of its Gemini models, particularly those requiring complex simulated reasoning, which Google refers to as ‘thinking’, Ironwood represents a significant leap forward in performance.

Instead of relying solely on software updates, Google is highlighting how hardware like Ironwood plays a central role in boosting AI capabilities, ushering in what it calls the ‘age of inference.’

However, this TPU is not just faster but dramatically more scalable. Ironwood chips will operate in tightly connected clusters of up to 9,216 units, each cooled by liquid and linked through an enhanced Inter-Chip Interconnect.

These chips can also be deployed in smaller 256-chip servers, offering flexibility for cloud developers and researchers.

Instead of offering modest improvements, Ironwood delivers a peak throughput of 4,614 teraflops per chip, alongside 192GB of memory and 7.2 terabits per second of bandwidth, making it vastly superior to its predecessor, Trillium.

Google says this advancement is more than a performance boost, it’s a foundation for building AI agents that can act on a user’s behalf by gathering information and producing outputs proactively.

Rather than functioning as passive tools, AI systems powered by Ironwood are intended to behave more independently, reflecting a growing trend toward what Google calls ‘agentic AI.’

While Google’s comparison to supercomputers like El Capitan may be flawed due to differing hardware standards, there’s no doubt Ironwood is a substantial upgrade. The company claims it is twice as powerful per watt as the v5p TPU, even if the newer Trillium (v6) chip wasn’t included in the comparison.

Regardless, Ironwood is expected to power the next generation of AI breakthroughs, as the company prepares to move beyond its current Gemini 2.5 model.

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DeepMind blocks staff from joining AI rivals

Google DeepMind is enforcing strict non-compete agreements in the United Kingdom, preventing employees from joining rival AI companies for up to a year. The length of the restriction depends on an employee’s seniority and involvement in key projects.

Some DeepMind staff, including those working on Google’s Gemini AI, are reportedly being paid not to work while their non-competes run. The policy comes as competition for AI talent intensifies worldwide.

Employees have voiced concern that these agreements could stall their careers in a rapidly evolving industry. Some are seeking ways around the restrictions, such as moving to countries with less rigid employment laws.

While DeepMind claims the contracts are standard for sensitive work, critics say they may stifle innovation and mobility. The practice remains legal in the UK, even though similar agreements have been banned in the US.

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Google blends AI mode with Lens

Google is enhancing its experimental AI Mode by combining the visual power of Google Lens with the conversational intelligence of Gemini, offering users a more dynamic way to search.

Instead of typing queries alone, users can now upload photos or take snapshots with their smartphone to receive more insightful answers.

The new feature moves beyond traditional reverse image search. For instance, you could snap a photo of a mystery kitchen tool and ask, ‘What is this, and how do I use it?’, receiving not only a helpful explanation but links to buy it and even video demonstrations.

Rather than focusing on a single object, AI Mode can interpret entire scenes, offering context-aware suggestions.

Take a photo of a bookshelf, a meal, or even a cluttered drawer, and AI Mode will identify items and describe how they relate to each other. It might suggest recipes using the ingredients shown, help identify a misplaced phone charger, or recommend the order to read your books.

Behind the scenes, the system runs multiple AI agents to analyse each element, providing layered, tailored responses.

Although other platforms like ChatGPT also support image recognition, Google’s strength lies in its decades of search data and visual indexing. Currently, the feature is accessible to Google One AI Premium subscribers or those enrolled in Search Labs via the Google mobile app.

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