With all the talent, data, and infrastructure that Google has, I believe them. That said, it is almost comical they'd not unleash what they keep saying is the better model. I am sure they have safety reasons and world security concerns given their gargantuan scale, but nothing they couldn't solve, surely? They make more in a week than what OpenAI probably makes in a year! They seem to be sleep walking compared to the sprinting pace of development around them. You don't say that often about Google.
I wonder what makes the Chrome and Android orgs different? Those openly conduct ridiculous experiments all the time.