EU regulators examine Microsoft’s OpenAI investment
The European Commission says some deals between big digital market players and generative AI developers and providers are being probed for their effects on market dynamics
Brussels — Microsoft’s financial backing for ChatGPT maker OpenAI may be subject to EU merger rules, EU antitrust regulators said on Tuesday, underscoring a similar warning from its UK peer in December. The US software giant, which committed in 2023 to investing more than $10bn into OpenAI with a nonvoting position on the board, has said it does not own any portion of OpenAI.
The European Commission had previously said it was following developments closely.
“The European Commission is checking whether Microsoft's investment in OpenAI might be reviewable under the EU Merger Regulation,” the EU executive, which acts as the EU competition enforcer, said in a statement.
It said some agreements agreed between large digital market players and generative AI developers and providers were being investigated for their effects on market dynamics. It did not name the companies.
On Tuesday, the commission also gave interested parties until March 11 to provide feedback on competition in virtual worlds and generative artificial intelligence.
It also sent requests for information to several large digital companies on the two topics.
“We are inviting businesses and experts to tell us about any competition issues that they may perceive in these industries, while also closely monitoring AI partnerships to ensure they do not unduly distort market dynamics,” EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager said.
Reuters