New York, Jan 23, 2026, 17:27 EST — After-hours
- Alphabet Class C shares (GOOG) dropped 0.7% on Friday, underperforming a few of its megacap tech rivals
- New developments emerged from regulators and courts concerning Waymo’s safety record and Google’s grip on search dominance
- Traders are focusing on Google’s AI Search rollout and Alphabet’s earnings call on Feb. 4
Alphabet’s Class C shares (GOOG.O), the non-voting stock, slipped 0.7% to close Friday at $328.43. The day saw the shares fluctuate between $327.85 and $333.97 amid legal and regulatory news involving Google and Waymo.
This matters since Alphabet aims to prove it can integrate generative AI into Search without disrupting the ad engine that funds it. The next catalyst is near, yet the market remains jittery over any signs of stricter regulations, rising expenses, or slower growth.
Google is expanding an experiment that taps deeper into personal data. On Thursday, Robby Stein, Google Search product lead, announced the rollout of “Personal Intelligence” in AI Mode — the chat-based search feature. This lets select users link their Gmail and Google Photos accounts for more customized results, with the company emphasizing the feature is “strictly opt-in.” https://blog.google/products-and-platforms/products/search/personal-intelligence-ai-mode-search/
The legal cloud remains. Late Thursday, U.S. District Judge Rita Lin in California ruled that consumers can move forward with key antitrust claims accusing Google of using deals with major tech firms to edge out rival search engines. She dismissed claims related to conduct before 2017 but allowed plaintiffs to try again on those.
After Friday’s close, another Alphabet unit came under fire. The National Transportation Safety Board launched an investigation into Waymo after its robotaxis in Austin, Texas, illegally passed stopped school buses at least 19 times. Waymo had recalled over 3,000 vehicles in December for a software update, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened its own probe back in October.
Some analysts took a different stance on the Street. On Thursday, Raymond James upgraded Alphabet to “Strong Buy,” pegging a $400 price target. Analyst Josh Beck noted that “GOOG is likely entering a cycle of improving AI Stack narrative and upward revisions,” according to Investing.com. The report also referenced Google Search chief Liz Reid, who said AI Overviews — the AI-generated summaries within Search — are handling “longer and more complex” queries. https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/raymond-james-upgrades-alphabet-to-strong-buy-as-ai-stack-shifts-to-high-gear-4459872
U.S. markets closed unevenly heading into the weekend. The S&P 500 crept up 0.1%, the Nasdaq rose 0.3%, while the Dow slipped 0.6%, per the Associated Press.
AI Mode is turning into a fierce battleground. AP reports that Google is pushing deeper personalization to counter AI-powered answer engines like ChatGPT and Perplexity. At the same time, it’s asking users to share more sensitive data—from emails to photos—to boost its AI’s context.
The downside scenario is straightforward. Antitrust lawsuits and safety investigations could stretch out, and any fix altering default search rankings or data access would strike at the heart of the business model. Meanwhile, AI-driven personalized answers might raise fresh privacy concerns and increase computing expenses before generating matching revenue.
Alphabet plans to release its fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings on Feb. 4, with a conference call scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Pacific (4:30 p.m. Eastern). Investors will be watching closely for updates on Search revenue, cloud expansion, and AI investments.
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