Google has been in a two-year effort to catch up with OpenAI in the chatbot space, a race that has involved layoffs and the lowering of some operational guardrails. The company initially set a 100-day timeline for Sissie Hsiao to develop a ChatGPT competitor, reflecting the urgency felt within the organization following OpenAI's advancements. Internal interviews with over 50 current and former employees highlight the challenges faced by Google, including the impact of layoffs on teams responsible for ensuring the legality of government requests for user data. As part of its strategy, Google has attempted to leverage AI to process police data requests, but reports indicate that this initiative has not been successful, leading to further layoffs within the company.