Overview
- The European Commission has launched proceedings to assess whether Meta restricted competing AI providers’ access to WhatsApp.
- In October, Meta changed WhatsApp’s terms to bar companies whose primary business is AI from using a specific business‑assistant feature.
- Existing AI providers have a transition window until mid‑January before the restriction fully applies.
- The case proceeds under EU competition law rather than the Digital Markets Act, with no set deadline and possible fines if abuse is confirmed.
- Meta says it has not received formal details of the EU case, while Italy’s competition authority continues a separate probe into forced integration and the lack of an opt‑out.