As fears swirl about artificial intelligence upending Alphabet Inc.’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google’s dominance in search, Deepwater Asset Management’s Gene Munster says the company is sending one message loud and clear — AI is boosting, not breaking, its core business.
Munster Says Google’s Search Is Thriving, Not Threatened
In a note shared Monday on social media, Munster wrote, “$GOOG has a message for investors: Search is doing fine.”
Munster pointed to comments from Liz Reid, Google’s head of Search, who appeared on The Wall Street Journal’s “Bold Names” podcast last week.
While the appearance might have seemed routine, Munster said the timing — just weeks before Alphabet reports earnings on Oct. 29 — was deliberate and telling.
“Any comments a company makes just before reporting earnings should be overweighted,” Munster wrote. “Liz Reid’s message two weeks before earnings was that AI is having a positive impact on Search.”
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AI Overviews Are Helping Google, Not Hurting It
Munster expects Google’s search revenue to grow about 11.7% in the September quarter, slightly above Wall Street’s 11.2% estimate, even amid tougher year-over-year comparisons tied to election ad spending.
“One metric we should get is monthly AI Mode users. I believe it will skyrocket to over 300m in September, up from over 100m in June,” he stated.
Competition Is Growing, But Google’s Grip Remains Firm
Munster also mentioned Reid’s acknowledgment of growing competition from Microsoft Corporation’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) Bing, which has gained modest share since integrating OpenAI’s ChatGPT, from 3% in mid-2023 to roughly 4% in 2025.
Still, Munster downplayed the risk, saying Google’s search share remains around 85–90% globally.
Analysts Back Google’s AI-Driven Strength
Wall Street analysts agree that AI is expanding Google’s total addressable market, not cannibalizing it.
Last month, Truist Securities analyst Youssef Squali stated in a note that AI chatbots, such as ChatGPT and Perplexity, are expanding the TAM of Search, rather than replacing it, while maintaining a Buy rating and raising his price target to $285.
Earlier this month, Perplexity AI CEO Aravind Srinivas said that for the first time in 20 years, Google is truly vulnerable, warning that the company’s heavy reliance on high-margin search advertising has become a strategic risk.
Price Action: Alphabet Inc.’s Class A shares rose 3.30% on Monday, while its Class C shares slipped 3.01%, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that GOOG continues to demonstrate solid momentum across short, medium and long-term timeframes. A detailed analysis of its performance metrics can be found here.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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