Google reportedly limits Meta’s use of Gemini AI models

Several other Google clients have also been ​affected, though to a lesser extent, according to the report

Google has put limits on Meta’s use of its Gemini AI ​models after the social media company sought more ‌computing capacity than the rival tech group could provide, the Financial Times reported on Sunday.

Google told Meta around March ​it could not meet the full Gemini capacity the ​company had sought to purchase, the newspaper said, ⁠adding that the shortfall disrupted and delayed some of ​Meta’s internal AI projects.

Several other Google clients have also been ​affected, though to a lesser extent, according to the report. Meta has been particularly impacted due to its exceptionally high demand for Google’s ​models, the FT said.

Due to the restrictions, Meta has encouraged staff to be more efficient with AI tokens, the units that measure AI usage, ​the FT report ​said.

Even as ⁠companies continue to spend billions on chips and data centres, they are still struggling to ​secure enough computing power to support the growing ​demand ⁠for AI services.

In Q1, Google Cloud generated $20 billion in revenue, showcasing strong business growth.

However, the report highlighted that Google CEO Sundar Pichai said the cloud business could have grown even faster if Google had more available computing capacity.

Obviously, we are compute-constrained in the near term, Pichai said. And as an example, our Cloud revenue would have been higher if we were able to meet the demand. Now, this could create a way for other providers like AWS, Azure, Oracle, and other specialised cloud providers to jump on the opportunity.

While companies are demanding greater AI compute as they deploy chatbots, coding assistants and AI agents across their businesses. Now, they are also struggling with a greater AI bill, and many tech giants, including Microsoft, have limited AI usage amid rising AI compute bill.