I think it's about controlling the conversation. Ad blockers are trickling down to mainstream adoption, and this is an existential threat to Google. The best w

I think it's about controlling the conversation. Ad blockers are trickling down to mainstream adoption, and this is an existential threat to Google. The best way to counter that is to redefine "ad blocker" to mean "Google ad server (Chrome)". Google can't win this fight by telling people to not use ad blockers. They can win this fight by making sure that when you offer to benefit your aunt by installing a real ad-blocker, she responds "that's ok, I hear Chrome already has an ad blocker". And of course, Google has all of the data needed to keep an eye on public opinion and how well this strategy is working.