Google Places Limits on Meta’s Use of Gemini AI

Google has reportedly imposed limits on Meta’s use of Gemini AI, as it has significantly strained the company’s computing power. The use of Gemini from Meta has surged, more than Google expected.

According to The Financial Times, Google placed conditions on Meta’s use of Gemini AI in March. The report claims that those in the know say Google limits Meta’s use of the technology because it cannot provide all the computing power and capacity Meta wished to purchase. As a result, some of Meta’s internal AI developments and projects have been delayed. As a result, Meta has warned staff to be diligent with its AI tokens to ensure the longevity of what’s available.

These limits aren’t only extended to Meta. The report states that “several” other clients under Google have been affected by similar restrictions. However, Meta is affected far more as it has “exceptionally high demand” for Gemini AI. Meta does not operate its own cloud business. Though, it’s leveraging $600 billion USD (roughly $852 billion CAD) in cloud computing investments over two years and is expanding its own data centres.

Although neither Google nor Meta have spoken about the matter, the story goes to show that even within the business of the largest tech companies, AI bottlenecks are a proven issue. Google and Meta are investing billions of dollars into AI computing, large data centres and chipsets to help power it all. Despite this, demand for AI services and advanced models remains rampant, especially in the B2B space.

By the end of Google’s first quarter (which concluded in March), revenue at Google Cloud reached $20 billion USD (around $28.4 billion CAD). CEO Sundar Pichai states that restrictions on computing power halt even higher growth. Google has a longstanding partnership with SpaceX, paying $920 million USD (around $1.3 billion CAD) a month to use xAI’s data centers.