I think there is a fundamental difference between a tool like the kernel and a protocol which is then implemented by others. Google is part of those who standardizes the web, and it killed any browser competition exactly because it pushed so much stuff, that if you start a browser from 0 today, you will need millions and years to work with most websites.
The Linux kernel instead is one, centralized and that gets distributed, and Linus and other maintainers are gatekeepers as well.
I honestly think there is simply no way to avoid a complete takeover when there is this much asymmetry. Or well, the way is to keep things separated, maybe.