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Google is getting AI wrong

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Google’s AI strategy, though technically impressive, lacks the cohesive vision, enterprise-grade stability, and governance needed to earn long-term trust from businesses navigating the AI era, says Paul Armstrong

Google’s I/O 2025 event was a spectacle of AI announcements, unveiling more than 100 updates across its product ecosystem. From the introduction of Veo 3, a generative video model, to Jules, an AI coding assistant, and enhancements to the Gemini AI model, the company demonstrated its commitment to embedding AI into every facet of its services. However, beneath the surface of these announcements lies a pressing concern: Google’s AI strategy appears increasingly reactive, raising questions about its suitability as a foundational platform for businesses aiming for long-term stability and innovation.

The integration of Gemini across Google’s suite of products, from Gmail and Docs to Android and Chrome, indicates an attempt to retrofit AI capabilities into existing services. While this approach showcases technical prowess, it lacks a cohesive vision, potentially leading to inconsistencies and integration challenges for enterprise users. A clearly articulated unifying strategy has yet to emerge across its AI initiatives, suggesting a company more focused on catching up than leading the AI frontier (except in scientific research).

Google stands at the forefront of AI development, with its Deepmind breakthroughs and early work in natural language processing setting the tone for the field. Today, however, the company seems locked in a pattern of following the cues of OpenAI and Anthropic rather than defining them. The rebranding of Bard to Gemini, while cosmetically useful, points to an underlying identity crisis and an ability to just get ‘it’. Businesses seeking to build long-term AI infrastructure want clarity on the direction of their tools and partners, something Google has pretty consistently failed to deliver on.

Undoubtedly, Veo 3 represents a significant advancement in AI-generated video, capable of producing synchronised audio and video content. Jules offers developers AI-assisted coding support. While both tools are technologically impressive, their practical applications for businesses remain stunted in many ways (for now at least). Veo 3 had a powerful demo but still lacks widespread utility for most enterprise contexts. Tools like Northell’s

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