Google is preparing for a critical 2025, with CEO Sundar Pichai stating that the company will focus heavily on artificial intelligence (AI) and scaling its Gemini chatbot to disrupt the market. During a strategy meeting on December 18, Pichai highlighted the stakes as being "high," calling 2025 a year of disruption. He stressed the need for the company to rapidly scale its AI products, particularly Gemini, to solve real user problems and compete with OpenAI's ChatGPT.

Pichai emphasized that building a major new business with Gemini is Google’s top priority. He expressed optimism about the recent momentum of the Gemini app but acknowledged that significant work remains in 2025 to close the gap and establish a leadership position. The goal is for Gemini to become the 16th Google product to hit 500 million users. Pichai noted that scaling Gemini on the consumer side will be crucial for the company's future growth.

These ambitious plans come at a time when Google is under intense regulatory scrutiny in multiple countries. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is pursuing an antitrust case against the company, accusing it of paying Apple $20 billion annually to keep Google as the default search engine on iPhones. Additionally, regulators are pushing Google to divest its Chrome browser division and address concerns over its online advertising practices. Despite these challenges, Pichai stressed the importance of not getting distracted by these issues and focusing on scaling the company's AI ambitions.