EU Orders Google to Open Android to Rival AI Assistants
The European Commission adopted two binding specification decisions under the Digital Markets Act (DMA) on July 16, 2026, ordering Google to give rival AI assistants the same system-level access to Android as Gemini.
Requirements
Google must provide rival AI assistants with access to: - Camera — for visual AI assistant features - Microphone — for voice activation and queries - Screen content — for contextual assistance - Wake-word activation — ability to activate via hotword - Drive other apps — ability to trigger actions in third-party apps
Timeline
- July 16, 2026: EC adopts binding specification decisions
- By August 2027: Google must ship these changes in Android 18 (raw/digests/Cyber-Digest-2026-07-18)
Security Implications
Opening these sensitive system capabilities to third-party AI assistants introduces new attack surface: - Malicious AI assistants could abuse camera/microphone permissions - Screen content access raises privacy concerns - Wake-word activation by untrusted assistants could enable persistent surveillance
Related Pages
- Illinois Ai Safety Act — US state AI frontier model regulation (same period)
- Nis2 Directive — EU cybersecurity regulation (parallel EU regulatory track)