The EU has launched a probe into Microsoft’s $13 billion deal with OpenAI, the firm behind the world’s most popular chatbot, ChatGPT.
The Brussels bigwigs want to know if the deal is a sneaky way of merging the two tech giants and creating a monopoly in the booming artificial intelligence (AI) industry.
The EU’s competition boss, Margrethe Vestager, who is jetting off to California this week to grill the top dogs of Apple, Google and OpenAI, said she wants to keep the AI market fair and open.
She said she is asking businesses and experts to spill the beans on any dodgy dealings in the AI sector, and keeping a close eye on any cosy partnerships that could harm competition.
Microsoft splashed out on OpenAI last year and bagged a seat on its board after backing its CEO Sam Altman, who survived a boardroom bust-up.
The UK’s watchdog is sniffing around the deal to see if it counts as a merger.
A SpokesVole said the deal has boosted AI innovation and competition, and that both firms are still independent.
They added: “The only thing that has changed recently is that Microsoft will now have a non-voting observer on OpenAI’s board.”
Europe hopes to catch up with its own AI stars, such as Germany’s Aleph Alpha and France’s Mistral AI. But regulators fear that the huge cash needed to develop AI could mean that the big boys like Microsoft, Google, Meta and Baidu could gobble up the smaller players.
