Google I/O 2025 Post-Mortem: The BS Translation Guide + Microsoft's Secret A2A Power Play

AI VENDOR BS DETECTOR + POLICY DECODER

Yesterday, Google hosted its annual I/O conference, flooding the market with exactly what I predicted last week: incremental features packaged as revolutionary breakthroughs. Meanwhile, Microsoft's adoption of Google's A2A protocol (announced May 7th) is proving to be the most significant chess move no one is paying attention to.

Let me translate what really happened at Google I/O and unpack the Microsoft-Google-OpenAI power struggle that's reshaping the entire AI ecosystem under your nose.

Google I/O 2025: The Marketing vs. Reality Translation Guide

What Google Announced: "AI Ultra Plan launched at $249/month with early access to Gemini, Veo 3 & more"

What It Actually Is: A desperate attempt to monetize features that should be included in the base product, with a ridiculous price point that only enterprise can justify.

The Five Biggest BS Moments from Yesterday's Keynote

1. Gemini 2.5 with Deep Think - Marketed as groundbreaking reasoning but just a rebranding of chain-of-thought techniques everyone else has been using for months.

2. Veo 3 Video Generation - Impressive demos that will absolutely break under real-world conditions. They showed 15-second scripted clips but conveniently avoided any complex scenarios.

3. Project Astra Smart Glasses - The EXACT SAME DEMO from last year with minor tweaks and still no shipping date or pricing. Classic Google hardware vaporware.

4. AI Mode in Search - The biggest stealth data collection play of 2025 masquerading as a helpful feature. Every query now trains their next-gen models.

5. Tiered AI Pricing - $19.99 for "AI Pro" and $249.99 for "AI Ultra" subscriptions signal the end of Google's "democratization of AI" marketing narrative. The real innovation is now paywalled.

What Was Genuinely Worth Noting

Google buried the lead on Agent2Agent (A2A) protocol adoption - this interoperability standard is actually the most consequential announcement but received minimal keynote time because it doesn't fit the "only Google can do this" narrative they wanted to build.

Microsoft's Stealth A2A Power Play

On May 7th, Microsoft quietly announced full support for Google's A2A protocol in Azure AI Foundry and Copilot Studio. This wasn't just some minor technical alignment - it was a brilliant strategic move in Microsoft's gradual separation from OpenAI.

The Hidden A2A Strategy

What Microsoft Said: "By supporting A2A and building on our open orchestration platform, we're laying the foundation for the next generation of software."

What It Actually Means: "We're building infrastructure specifically designed to work with non-OpenAI models, creating the technical foundation to swap them out whenever we're ready."

The timing is impeccable. As tensions grow between Microsoft and OpenAI over equity negotiations and the refusal to share technical details about reasoning models (like o1 and o3-mini), Microsoft is already testing:

1. Their own MAI models as OpenAI replacements

2. xAI, Meta, and DeepSeek models as alternatives

3. Full support for both competing protocols (Anthropic's MCP and Google's A2A)

The Three-Dimensional Chess Match Being Played

While most reporters focused on fancy demos, three massive power moves happened this month that completely reshape the AI vendor landscape:

1. Google's Protocol Power Play

Google released A2A on April 9th, creating a standard for AI agents to communicate regardless of the underlying AI provider. This wasn't just a technical standard - it was a direct attack on OpenAI's walled garden approach.

By securing 50+ partners at launch (including Salesforce, SAP, and major consulting firms), Google ensured A2A would become a de facto standard. Microsoft's adoption sealed the deal.

2. Microsoft's Controlled Retreat

Microsoft is executing the most carefully orchestrated exit strategy in recent tech history:

• March 2025: Train competitive MAI models rivaling OpenAI/Anthropic

• April 2025: Test replacement models from competitors

• May 7, 2025: Adopt Google's A2A protocol

• Now: "Tough negotiations" that conveniently provide public cover for the inevitable split

3. OpenAI's Strategic Isolation

OpenAI is being slowly isolated:

• Their largest investor is building competitive models (MAI)

• Their infrastructure partner (Microsoft) is creating multi-model infrastructure

• Industry-wide protocols they don't control are gaining adoption (A2A, MCP)

• Their refusal to share technical details about o1 and other reasoning models is accelerating Microsoft's exit

The A2A Protocol: Why It's The Real Game-Changer

The Agent2Agent protocol may sound like boring developer stuff, but it's actually the most significant industry shift of 2025. Here's why:

What A2A Actually Does:

• Allows AI agents to communicate with each other across vendors

• Standardizes how agents discover capabilities and exchange information

• Creates a true multi-model AI ecosystem

Why It Matters:

• Enterprise can mix and match AI providers based on strengths

• No single vendor can control the ecosystem

• Applications built today won't be locked to a single AI provider tomorrow

Microsoft's adoption of A2A signals they're already preparing for a post-OpenAI world - one where Azure hosts multiple competing models that can be swapped in and out based on performance, cost, and capabilities.

What This Means For Enterprise Decision-Makers

If you're making AI purchasing decisions, here's what this all means for you:

1. Google's AI Ultra Tier ($249/month) - Only worth it if you need early access to Gemini, Veo 3, and other advanced features. Otherwise, wait for the inevitable price drop when adoption fails to meet targets.

2. Microsoft-OpenAI Relationship - Plan for a formal split within 12-18 months. Ensure any OpenAI-dependent infrastructure you build has alternative model options.

3. Protocol Support - Prioritize vendors supporting both MCP (Anthropic's standard) and A2A (Google's standard) protocols. This gives you maximum flexibility as the vendor landscape shifts.

4. Model Diversity - Start testing alternative models now (Anthropic, xAI, Meta, DeepSeek). The performance gap is narrowing fast, and pricing will be the next competitive battlefield.

Wednesday's Truth

While the tech media focuses on flashy demos and subscription tiers, the real AI power struggle is happening at the protocol and infrastructure level. Google I/O was 90% marketing with a few genuine innovations buried under buzzwords. The real story is Microsoft's systematic preparation for AI vendor independence.

For BSKiller subscribers, this gives you significant strategic advantage - you now understand the chess moves 3-4 steps ahead of your competitors who are still focused on the surface-level announcements.

Next Wednesday: I'll decode the hidden details of Microsoft's MAI models based on sources inside the Azure team, plus break down what really happened at Google I/O after the marketing dust settles.

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Sources for today's analysis:

• Google I/O 2025 keynote and sessions (May 20-21)

• Microsoft's A2A adoption announcement (May 7)

• Azure AI Foundry documentation

• Google's A2A protocol specifications

• Reuters reporting on Microsoft's internal model development

The BS never stops, but neither do we.