The European Commission has launched an antitrust investigation against Meta, looking into how WhatsApp allows access to artificial intelligence providers, amid tightening EU controls on major US tech companies.
The investigation comes amid a series of major fines imposed on American tech giants in the recent period
The investigation aims to determine whether the new policy introduced by Meta in October, which bans AI providers from using the tool through which companies can contact customers on WhatsApp when their main service is based on artificial intelligence, breaks EU competition rules.
Brussels has warned that the measure could prevent third-party AI providers from offering their services through WhatsApp in the European Economic Area.
Meta claims the allegations are “baseless”, arguing that WhatsApp’s API is not designed for AI chatbots and would overload systems.
The investigation comes amid a series of major fines levied on tech giants:
Google was fined 2.95 billion euros for violations in online advertising
Apple was fined 500 million euros in April
Meta was fined €200 million for breaching data usage options rules
The EU can impose fines of up to 10% of a company’s annual revenues.
European Competition Commissioner Teresa Ribera said the bloc must ensure that “European citizens and companies benefit fully from the technological revolution” and that dominant firms do not use their power to block innovation.
The investigation will cover the whole of the EEA, with the exception of Italy, which is conducting a separate procedure regarding possible interim measures related to Meta’s conduct.
Trump threatens the EU with additional tariffs
US President Donald Trump has previously criticized EU investigations against US firms, threatening an investigation that could lead to additional tariffs for the EU bloc.
