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Two of Big Tech’s heaviest hitters – Alphabet (GOOGL) and Apple (AAPL) – have spent decades shaping the digital world side by side. They have partnered in meaningful ways, from Google Search powering Safari to YouTube living comfortably on iPhones. But now, amid rising artificial intelligence (AI) fervor and legal scrutiny, their relationship is taking another twist.
Both giants are battling headwinds. Apple’s 2025 has been rocky, with iPhone demand softening and regulatory pressure mounting. Alphabet, meanwhile, is entrenched in a high-stakes antitrust trial. At the heart of the case is whether Google’s dominance over online search has shut out competition, especially on mobile devices like the iPhone.