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The European Union (EU) has accused Meta of breaching its competition laws by blocking rival AI chatbots from its popular WhatsApp messaging platform. The Commission’s preliminary findings state that since a change on January 15th, only Meta’s own AI assistant, Meta AI, has been allowed on WhatsApp, effectively barring competitors like ChatGPT from access.
The EU regulators argue that WhatsApp serves as a critical gateway for users to interact with AI tools, and that Meta is unfairly leveraging its dominant position in messaging to stifle competition in the burgeoning AI market.
The Commission’s competition chief, Teresa Ribera, emphasised the need to protect a dynamic and competitive landscape for AI development. She asserted that dominant technology companies must not be permitted to illegally use their power in one sector to create an unfair advantage in another. This action is framed as a protective measure for the market, ensuring that innovation and consumer choice are not hindered with unfair competition by dominant firms.
Meta Pushes Back Against Recent Allegations
Meta has firmly pushed back against the EU’s allegations. A company spokesperson contended that the Commission had “no reason to breach competition laws” and that its findings were based on an incorrect assumption. Specifically, Meta challenged the notion that WhatsApp Business—the version of the app used by companies to communicate with customers—is a primary channel for users to access AI chatbots, suggesting the EU’s case misunderstands how the public typically uses these services.
The EU’s next steps involve awaiting Meta’s formal response to its preliminary findings. Depending on the nature and substance of Meta’s reply, the Commission holds the authority to impose “interim measures.” These are designed as urgent actions to prevent a company from causing what regulators deem “serious and irreparable harm” to the competitive market while a full investigation is ongoing. In practical terms, this could force Meta to reopen WhatsApp to third-party AI assistants before a final legal ruling is made.
Legal experts note the broader significance of this case. Mathias Vermeulen, a director at a law firm specialising in EU digital policy, highlighted that the preliminary findings send a clear signal that controlling a central platform does not grant a company the right to unfairly cross-promote its services in adjacent markets. He clarified that while no final legal breach has been determined, the potential imposition of interim measures itself would be a significant regulatory intervention, compelling Meta to change its practices pending the investigation’s outcome.
This action against Meta is part of a wider, aggressive enforcement campaign by the European Union under its new suite of digital regulations. The announcement follows closely on the heels of a directive to TikTok concerning “addictive design” and a separate January inquiry into Elon Musk’s X platform over its AI tool Grok. Together, these cases illustrate the EU’s concerted effort to police the digital sphere actively, challenging the business practices of the world’s largest tech firms across issues of competition, online safety, and ethical AI development.
