EU to launch antitrust probe into Meta over use of AI in WhatsApp, FT reports

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Dec 4 (Reuters) – Brussels is planning a new antitrust investigation into Meta Platforms over its rollout of artificial intelligence features in WhatsApp, the Financial Times reported on Thursday, reflecting rising scrutiny of Big Tech’s use of generative AI on large platforms.

The commission was set to open the probe into how the California-based company integrated its Meta AI system into the messaging service earlier this year, the FT said, citing two officials.

Meta AI, a chatbot and virtual assistant, has been built into WhatsApp’s interface since March 2025 across European markets.

The company told Reuters it has not received details of the probe and pointed to an earlier WhatsApp statement on the Italian inquiry, which it dismissed as “unfounded.”

Italy’s antitrust watchdog opened an investigation in July into allegations that Meta leveraged its market power by integrating an AI tool into WhatsApp. The probe was expanded in November to examine whether Meta further abused its dominance by blocking rival AI chatbots from the messaging platform.

The commission is expected to announce the investigation in the coming days, though the timing could change, the newspaper reported. FT said the probe will be conducted under traditional antitrust rules rather than the EU’s Digital Markets Act, the bloc’s landmark legislation currently used to scrutinize Amazon and Microsoft’s <MSFT.O> cloud services for potential curbs.

The European Commission did not immediately respond to a request from Reuters for comment. It declined to comment to the FT.

(Reporting by Mrinmay Dey and Rishabh Jaiswal in Bengaluru; Editing Mrigank Dhaniwala and by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)