EU’s Antitrust Move: Meta Might Bring Back Rival AI on WhatsApp
On Wednesday, the European Commission announced its intention to direct Meta Platforms to restore access to competing artificial intelligence assistants on its WhatsApp messaging service, following the imposition of an access fee by the US tech giant. “The Commission notified Meta that the revised policy seems to have the same effect of excluding third-party AI assistants from WhatsApp and thus appears at first sight to be in breach of EU (European Union) competition rules,” stated the EU’s executive arm.
“To prevent serious and irreparable harm to competition, the Commission intends to order Meta to reinstate access for third-party AI assistants under the same conditions as before 15 October 2025,” it added in a statement. In March, Meta communicated to the Commission its decision to permit competing AI assistants on WhatsApp for a duration of one year, subject to a fee, following its previous intention to prohibit third-party AI chatbots from WhatsApp Business. According to EU regulations, competition regulators possess the authority to mandate that companies halt questionable business practices on a temporary basis; however, these orders are subject to challenge in the courts located in Luxembourg.
Fines for breaching the EU antitrust rulebook can reach up to 10 per cent of global annual revenue, although they seldom attain that maximum, particularly when the alleged misconduct is of a temporary nature. “The European Commission is proposing to use its regulatory powers to enable some of the largest firms in the world to use the paid-for WhatsApp Business product for free,” a Meta spokesperson said. “This means that a small bakery in France paying to use the service to take croissant orders will be picking up the tab for OpenAI,” the spokesperson added. The Commission also stated that its investigation had been broadened to include Italy, where the Italian competition watchdog initiated its own inquiry last year.
