Italy Orders Meta to Halt WhatsApp’s AI Chatbot Ban
▼ Summary
– Italy’s competition authority has ordered Meta to suspend its policy banning companies from using WhatsApp’s business tools to offer third-party AI chatbots.
– The authority believes Meta’s conduct may constitute an abuse of its dominant market position to favor its own Meta AI chatbot.
– The policy change, effective in January, would specifically prohibit general-purpose chatbots like those from OpenAI or Claude from being distributed via WhatsApp’s API.
– The policy does not affect businesses using AI for customer service, such as retailers operating AI-powered support bots on the platform.
– The European Commission has also launched a separate investigation into the policy over concerns it restricts third-party AI providers in the European Economic Area.
Italian regulators have taken decisive action against Meta, ordering the tech giant to immediately suspend a policy that would prevent companies from offering their own AI chatbots through WhatsApp’s business tools. The Italian Competition Authority (AGCM) issued an interim measure, stating that Meta’s conduct appears to constitute an abuse of its dominant market position and could cause serious, irreparable harm to competition in the AI chatbot services market. This move halts a planned policy change set for January, which would have barred general-purpose AI assistants like those from OpenAI or Perplexity from being distributed via WhatsApp’s business API.
The AGCM’s investigation centers on whether Meta is leveraging its control over the popular messaging platform to unfairly promote its own Meta AI chatbot while restricting rivals. Authorities argue the policy could limit innovation and consumer choice by blocking third-party AI providers from accessing WhatsApp’s vast user network within the European Economic Area. While the investigation continues, the suspension aims to prevent potential damage to market contestability.
Meta has defended its position, contending that its business API was not designed as a distribution channel for standalone chatbots. The company points out that users have numerous other avenues to access external AI services. It is important to note that the disputed policy does not target businesses using AI for specific customer service functions on WhatsApp; a retailer employing an AI assistant for support would remain unaffected. The restriction specifically applies to the distribution of broad, general-purpose AI chatbots through the API.
This regulatory challenge in Italy coincides with heightened scrutiny from the broader European Union. The European Commission has also opened a preliminary investigation into the same policy, expressing concerns it may illegally hinder competition by preventing third-party AI providers from operating in the EEA. These parallel actions signal growing regulatory unease with how major platform operators might use their infrastructure to control emerging technology sectors.
The outcome of this case could set a significant precedent for how digital gatekeepers manage access to their services, particularly as artificial intelligence becomes increasingly integrated into everyday applications. For now, companies developing AI chatbots retain the ability to connect with WhatsApp users through business tools, pending the final results of the antitrust probes.
(Source: TechCrunch)
