Google Blocked Motorola Use of Perplexity AI, Witness Says

(Bloomberg) — Google’s contract with Lenovo Group Ltd.’s Motorola blocked the smartphone maker from setting Perplexity AI as the default assistant on its new devices, an executive of the startup testified at the search giant’s antitrust trial.

Perplexity’s Chief Business Officer Dmitry Shevelenko said Wednesday that the company’s efforts to obtain preferential distribution on smartphones from manufacturers and wireless carriers were because of Google contracts, which he said are like a “gun to your head” for a company. His testimony came at a hearing to determine a remedy in the Justice Department’s lawsuit against Google after the Alphabet Inc. unit it was found to have an illegal monopoly in search.