The European Union is increasing scrutiny of Big Tech as the EU to launch a new antitrust investigation into Meta Platforms. The probe will focus on Meta’s rollout of artificial intelligence features in WhatsApp.
According to the Financial Times, the European Commission plans to examine how the California-based company integrated its Meta AI system into WhatsApp earlier this year. Meta AI, a chatbot and virtual assistant, has been part of WhatsApp’s interface in European markets since March 2025.
Meta Platforms told Reuters that it has not received formal details of the investigation. The company referred to a previous WhatsApp statement regarding Italy’s ongoing inquiry, which it called “unfounded.”
Earlier, Italy’s antitrust authority opened a separate investigation in July into allegations that Meta abused its market power by embedding the AI tool in WhatsApp. In November, the probe was expanded to determine whether the company blocked rival AI chatbots from competing on its messaging platform.
The EU to launch probe is expected to be officially announced in the coming days, though the exact timing may change. The investigation will follow traditional antitrust rules rather than the EU’s Digital Markets Act, which has recently been used to examine Amazon and Microsoft for potential anti-competitive practices in cloud services.
Industry analysts note that the move reflects growing concerns across Europe about how generative AI is being deployed by dominant tech platforms. Regulators are keen to ensure that AI integration does not unfairly disadvantage competitors or exploit market dominance.
The European Commission has not issued an official comment yet and declined to respond to the Financial Times’ inquiries.
With the EU to launch this investigation, Meta may face significant regulatory challenges in Europe, highlighting the heightened oversight of AI innovations by major technology companies. The probe could have broader implications for the deployment of generative AI on widely used platforms.
In other news read more about: NASA And SpaceX Launch Sentinel-6B Satellite To Improve Ocean Monitoring
