14 hours ago
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Foo Yun Chee
Tue, May 5, 2026 astatine 8:29 AM CDT 2 min read
By Foo Yun Chee
BRUSSELS, May 5 (Reuters) - Meta Platforms connected Tuesday sought to stave disconnected an imminent EU bid to let rival AI chatbots escaped entree to its societal messaging tract WhatsApp, arsenic it presented its arguments to EU antitrust officials.
Meta's petition for Tuesday's closed proceeding came aft the European Commission past period sent the tech elephantine an further complaint expanse outlining its plan. It is portion of an interim measurement portion the EU enforcer continues its probe into whether the institution abuses its marketplace power, which could effect successful a hefty fine. The Commission volition determine successful coming months whether to contented the order.
Meta introduced a argumentation connected January 15 allowing lone its Meta AI adjunct on WhatsApp, earlier subsequently amending it in March, saying rivals could present usage the societal messaging app for a fee.
That triggered the 2nd complaint from EU regulators connected apical of the archetypal complaint in February related to imaginable impermanent measures to halt Meta from blocking AI rivals.
Meta lawyer Tim Lamb and different lawyers were astatine the proceeding successful Brussels portion executives successful the United States were expected to travel the 4 hour-long proceeding online.
Meta reiterated its erstwhile comments, saying the EU antitrust watchdog was utilizing its powerfulness to alteration immoderate of the largest companies successful the satellite to usage the paid-for WhatsApp Business merchandise for free.
"This means that a tiny bakery successful France paying to usage the work to instrumentality croissant orders volition beryllium picking up the tab for OpenAI. Small European businesses shouldn't ft OpenAI's bill," a Meta spokesperson said.
The Commission's Deputy Director-General for Antitrust Linsey McCallum and her manager Carlota Reyners Fontana declined to remark arsenic they headed into the hearing.
The Interaction Company of California, developer of the Poke.com AI adjunct and a complainant successful the case, besides took part.
"Meta is seeking to monopolize the usage of WhatsApp for AI services by reserving it to its ain offerings and excluding competitors like us," Felix Schlegel, co-founder and CTO of The Interaction Company of California, said up of the hearing.
"We invited the Commission's enactment and its information of interim measures. At the hearing, we volition marque wide that these measures are indispensable and should beryllium adopted without delay," helium said.
OpenAI and French AI startup Simone were listed as participants successful the hearing, according to a idiosyncratic with nonstop cognition of the matter.
(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Susan Fenton)
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