The European Commission is now launching an investigation into whether WhatsApp’s new policy that disallows AI providers from using its business tools to communicate with users may breach EU competition rules.
On the face of it, things are pretty clear – WhatsApp owner Meta has Meta AI, which is very prominently featured inside all of its apps, including WhatsApp. And while competing AI providers have been able to offer their chatbots inside WhatsApp, Meta recently prohibited third party AI providers from using the WhatsApp business tools “when AI is the primary service offered”.
This will result in other AI chatbots not being available via WhatsApp anymore when the new policy takes effect on January 15. Meta’s new policy states that businesses may still use AI for ancillary or support purposes, such as automated customer support, but not much more than that.
The EC says that, if proven, the practices under investigation may breach EU rules that prohibit the abuse of a dominant position. It’s unclear how long the investigation will take, but we’ll keep you posted.
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