Google's CEO has made an appeal that the company should not be broken up, as federal regulators and Congress are directing increasing scrutiny at the tech goliath.
Google's massive size allows it to invest in future technologies without worrying about 'short-term profits,' CEO Sundar Pichai insisted in an interview with CNN Business on Thursday.
'Scale does offer many benefits, it's important to understand that,' argued Pichai. 'Big companies are what are investing in technologies like AI the most.'
Pichai even hinted that if Google were subject to antitrust regulation, it would spell doom for American innovation, allowing competitors like China to seize the advantage.
Google's massive size allows it to invest in future technologies without worrying about 'short-term profits,' CEO Sundar Pichai said in an interview on Thursday
'There are many countries around the world which aspire to be the next Silicon Valley, and they are supporting their companies too. So we have to balance both,' he said in response to a question about China.
It comes as Google and other tech giants face withering scrutiny over privacy practices, censorship, the gutting of local journalism, and potential anti-competitive practices.
It emerged earlier this month that the Justice Department will look at Google and Apple, while the Federal Trade Commission will probe Amazon and Facebook to determine if they abused their massive market power, setting up what could be unprecedented, wide-ranging probes of some of the world's largest companies.
Meanwhile, the House Judiciary committee is launching its own antitrust inquiry into the tech industry, including Google.
Asked about the various probes, Pinchai tried to project an air of equanimity, saying it was 'perfectly fine' for companies like Google to be scrutinized when they get big enough.
'Scrutiny is right, and we will participate constructively in these
