The Future of Search: Sundar Pichai on AI, Agents, and Chrome’s Role

In a recent interview with The Verge’s Decoder podcast, Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai shared his vision for the future of search, the transformative potential of AI agents, and Google’s stance on the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) antitrust proposals, including the potential sale of Chrome. Conducted shortly after Google’s I/O developer conference in May 2025, the discussion highlighted Google’s bold plans to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into its core products while addressing regulatory challenges and concerns about the web’s future. Here’s a deep dive into Pichai’s insights and what they mean for Google, the internet, and users worldwide.

AI-Powered Search: A New Era for Google

Pichai emphasized that AI is fundamentally reshaping Google Search, with innovations like AI Overviews and the upcoming AI Mode driving a more conversational and multimodal experience. “Search itself will continue to change profoundly in [2025],” Pichai stated, predicting that by early 2025, Google Search will handle more complex queries with enhanced capabilities. AI Overviews, which provide AI-generated summaries at the top of search results, are already increasing query volume and user engagement, with Pichai noting higher click-through rates on links within these summaries.

Unlike critics who argue that AI-driven search could reduce web traffic by keeping users on Google’s platform, Pichai insists that Google remains committed to sending traffic to websites. “I think more than any other company, we prioritize sending traffic to the web,” he said, highlighting that Google has crawled 45% more webpages in the last two years. He drew parallels to past technological shifts, like the transition from desktop to mobile, suggesting that while AI may disrupt traditional models, it ultimately enhances user access to high-quality content.

Google’s AI strategy extends beyond text, with multimodal capabilities integrating images, videos, and audio. Pichai referenced Gemini, Google’s AI model, as a cornerstone of this evolution, designed to process diverse data types for richer search results. For example, Google Photos now allows users to ask complex questions like “What’s my license plate number?” by analyzing their photo libraries. This shift toward multimodal AI is blurring the lines between different forms of content, creating a seamless user experience.

AI Agents: The Next Digital Frontier

Pichai’s vision for AI extends beyond search to the rise of AI agents—intelligent systems that act autonomously on users’ behalf. He compared their potential to credit card companies, suggesting they could mediate transactions and streamline daily tasks like scheduling or financial management. “AI agents will become an integral part of our daily lives, helping us with everything from scheduling appointments to managing our finances,” Pichai noted.

This shift could redefine how users interact with technology, moving from manual inputs to AI-driven automation. However, Pichai acknowledged challenges, particularly around new business models and ensuring that existing businesses adapt to agent-mediated interactions. He described AI as a “platform shift bigger than the internet,” predicting the emergence of new companies and product categories driven by AI’s scalability and the plummeting cost of computation. For instance, he highlighted that the cost of generating AI tokens has dropped by 97% in the past 18 months, making intelligence “too cheap to meter.”

Chrome and Antitrust: A Battle for Control

A significant portion of the interview addressed the DOJ’s antitrust case against Google, particularly the proposal to force the company to sell Chrome. The DOJ argues that Google’s dominance in search, reinforced by Chrome and default agreements with companies like Apple, stifles competition. Pichai, who led Chrome’s development before becoming CEO, defended its role, noting that Google invested over $1 billion in the browser last year alone and contributes over 90% of the code to the open-source Chromium project.

“It’s not clear to me how to fund all the innovation we do if we were to give all of it away at marginal cost,” Pichai said, arguing that the DOJ’s remedies, such as sharing Google’s search index with competitors, could undermine innovation and make Search unsustainable. He described these proposals as a “de facto divestiture of search,” warning that they could “kill” Google Search by eroding its competitive edge.

Pichai also pushed back against claims of monopolistic behavior, asserting that the AI landscape is highly competitive, with players like OpenAI and Perplexity vying for market share. He took a jab at Microsoft, which relies on OpenAI’s technology, saying, “I would love to do a side-by-side comparison of Microsoft’s own models and our models any day, any time.”

The Web’s Future: Openness and Opportunity

Despite concerns that AI could centralize the internet into a series of databases accessed by agents, Pichai remains optimistic about the web’s resilience. “I’ve cared about the Web for a long time, but I think it belongs to no one, and there is inherent value in that,” he said. He dismissed fears of the web’s decline, citing its growth and Google’s role in surfacing trustworthy content in an era of information overload.

Pichai also addressed content creators’ concerns about AI training, acknowledging the complexity of fair use and compensation. Google currently licenses data from sources like Reddit and The New York Times, and Pichai predicted a future marketplace where creators are paid for content used in AI models. This approach could balance the needs of creators and AI developers, ensuring the web remains a vibrant ecosystem.

Regulatory Challenges and Google’s Response

The DOJ’s push to divest Chrome and share Google’s search technology is part of a broader antitrust battle that began in 2020. Pichai argued that such measures could compromise user privacy and data security while stifling innovation. He emphasized Google’s negotiations with Apple to integrate Gemini AI as an option in Apple Intelligence, signaling a move toward non-exclusive partnerships.

Pichai’s testimony in court underscored his belief that Google’s scale and ecosystem are the results of innovation, not anti-competitive practices. He remains focused on product development, stating, “I spend the vast majority of my time on innovation and product innovation we need to do as a company.”

What’s Next for Google?

Pichai’s interview paints a picture of a company doubling down on AI to redefine search and user interactions while fiercely defending its ecosystem against regulatory threats. The integration of Gemini and AI Mode into Search, the rise of AI agents, and Google’s commitment to the open web signal a transformative decade ahead. However, the antitrust battle and competition from rivals like OpenAI and Microsoft will test Google’s ability to maintain its dominance.

As Pichai noted, “We are in the earliest stages of a profound shift.” Whether Google can navigate this shift while preserving the open web and its core products like Chrome remains to be seen. For now, Pichai’s vision is clear: AI is the future, and Google intends to lead it.