Meta faces EU probe over plan to block AI rivals on WhatsApp

Meta Platforms was subject to another EU antitrust investigation on Thursday over its rollout of artificial intelligence features in its WhatsApp messenger that would block rivals, as Big Tech's use of generative AI comes under increasing scrutiny.

The European Commission opened the probe following complaints from smaller companies and said it may impose interim measures against Meta. The move, reported earlier by Reuters and the Financial Times, is the latest action by European regulators against large technology firms such as Amazon and Alphabet's Google as the bloc seeks to balance support for the sector with efforts to curb its expanding influence.

Europe's tougher stance has sparked an industry pushback, particularly by US tech titans, and led to criticism from the administration of US President Donald Trump. The European Commission said that the investigation will look into Meta's new policy that would limit other AI providers' access to WhatsApp, a potential boost for its own Meta AI system integrated into the platform earlier this year.

EU antitrust chief Teresa Ribera said she could impose interim measures, something the Italian competition authority is separately considering. "We need to address what is happening and it may be that we need to adopt these interim measures," Ribera told reporters on the sidelines of a Bruegel event. She had earlier said the EU investigation meant to ensure European citizens and businesses could benefit fully from AI and aimed to prevent dominant firms abusing their power to crowd out innovative competitors amid a European boom in the technology.

A WhatsApp spokesperson called the claims "baseless", adding that the emergence of chatbots on its platforms had put a "strain on our systems that they were not designed to support", a reference to AI systems from other providers. "Still, the AI space is highly competitive and people have access to the services of their choice in any number of ways, including app stores, search engines, email services, partnership integrations, and operating systems." The EU was the first in the world to establish a comprehensive legal framework for AI, setting out guardrails for AI systems and rules for certain high-risk applications in the AI Act. META AI VS RIVAL AI CHATBOTS Meta AI, a chatbot and virtual assistant, has been built into WhatsApp's interface across European markets since March.