Google Paid Samsung An 'enormous' Amount Of Money To Prioritize Gemini In One UI

As Google sits in the hot seat for paying companies to utilize its products in place of any competition, court testimony reveals that Google did the same thing with Gemini. Samsung was reportedly paid a lot of money to push Gemini as a preinstalled app in One UI.

A handful of antitrust suits have been brought against Google in the last couple of years. These cases have ruled that Google has taken steps to become a monopoly in certain areas, such as the online search market and ad tech. While the rulings have decidedly stated that Google used unfair means to gain an advantage, Google has yet to take steps to backtrack.

During the ongoing antitrust case over Google’s search monopoly, testimony revealed that Google paid Samsung money to keep Gemini at the forefront of One UI (via Bloomberg). Peter Fitzgerald – Google vice president of platforms and device partnerships – stated that Samsung was paid “an enormous sum of money” on a monthly basis. This went towards ensuring that Gemini was pre-installed on Samsung’s devices and made a large part of the experience.

According to the report, the contract was set for at least two years. In it, Google set out to regularly pay Samsung for each device that has Gemini pre-installed. The ads within the app are also a part of the deal, with Google paying Samsung a percentage of revenue from interactions.

Samsung doesn’t make a secret of trying to push its own AI products on Galaxy devices, though Gemini clearly holds the most ground as a default AI experience. Still, Samsung accepted payment to house Gemini by default, though it may have altered the company’s plans to build its own default AI app. One wonders what Samsung could have built if it had planned on using its own AI app in One UI. Still, Galaxy AI is found throughout the device and weaves its way through Gemini features in some form, though it could be more cohesive.

Monday’s hearing is set to be the last until a final decision is expected in September 2025. Google is expected to appeal the final decision.