EU Opens Antitrust Probe Into Meta Over WhatsApp AI Integration

The European Commission opened an antitrust investigation on Thursday into Meta Platforms, scrutinizing the social media giant's integration of its Meta AI assistant into WhatsApp and new rules governing how third party AI providers can access the messaging service. Regulators are examining whether Meta’s policy, which would keep Meta AI available while potentially blocking rival AI providers from reaching WhatsApp users, constitutes an abuse of a dominant market position and could harm competition in the fast evolving artificial intelligence market.

The probe will proceed under traditional European Union competition rules rather than under the Digital Markets Act, officials said. That choice signals the Commission intends to apply established abuse of dominance principles, looking at whether Meta’s conduct forecloses rivals and harms consumers and innovation. Commission officials are also reported to be considering interim measures to prevent potential irreparable harm to competition while the investigation continues.

WhatsApp, which reaches more than two billion users worldwide, plays a central role in global messaging and in how people communicate with businesses and services. Regulators in Brussels are increasingly focused on how major platforms combine their dominant positions in communications with proprietary AI features, and on whether rules on third party access can entrench market power in nascent AI ecosystems.

Under EU competition law, dominant firms are prohibited from engaging in conduct that unfairly excludes competitors or distorts competition. The Commission will assess whether Meta’s approach restricts interoperability or access for competing AI providers and whether that restriction would materially reduce choice or raise barriers for AI startups and smaller developers trying to reach WhatsApp’s user base.

Proceeding under standard competition rules rather than the Digital Markets Act does not reduce the gravity of the scrutiny. The DMA sets ex ante obligations for designated gatekeepers, but traditional antitrust enforcement allows the Commission to tailor remedies to specific conduct and to seek urgent interim relief if swift action is needed to prevent irreversible damage to competitive dynamics.

The probe comes as companies race to embed generative AI across consumer products and services. Regulators have voiced concerns across jurisdictions about vertical integration where platform owners both control essential gateways to users and operate competing AI services. European authorities have said they will not hesitate to intervene where such integration risks stifling rival innovation or undermining consumer welfare.

Meta has pushed back against the allegations, calling claims unfounded. The company has argued its policies are meant to protect user privacy and safety while enabling innovation across its services.

Investigations of this kind can take many months and may result in remedies ranging from behavioral commitments to structural changes in how services interact. For startups and established AI developers, the outcome will be closely watched as it could determine whether major platforms remain open arenas for third party services or increasingly closed ecosystems favoring in house offerings.