EU Opens Antitrust Probe into Meta Over WhatsApp AI Integration & Dominance Abuse Concerns

The European Union is preparing to launch an antitrust investigation into Meta’s integration of its “Meta AI” features within WhatsApp, the Financial Times reported on Thursday. The probe, expected to be announced soon, will reportedly examine whether the rollout of the AI tools amounted to an abuse of Meta’s dominant position on the messaging platform.

Officials cited by the FT said regulators will scrutinise how Meta embedded its chatbot and virtual-assistant features directly into WhatsApp’s interface following their rollout across European markets in March 2025.

The inquiry will proceed under the EU’s traditional antitrust framework rather than the bloc’s newer Digital Markets Act.

Follow-Up to National Action in Italy

The move follows national enforcement: Italy’s antitrust authority opened its own investigation in July into whether Meta leveraged its dominance by tying Meta AI to WhatsApp, and in late November expanded that probe to examine allegations that Meta blocked rival AI chatbots from the platform. The Italian proceedings spurred broader EU attention.

Meta told Reuters it had not received formal details of an EU probe and has previously dismissed parts of the Italian inquiry as “unfounded.” The Union had not publicly commented at the time of reporting.

Regulators Scrutiny

Regulators across Europe have stepped up scrutiny of Big Tech as generative-AI features become distribution points for new services. Authorities are particularly alert to practices that could steer users toward a company’s own AI products and away from competing services, conduct that might limit choice or entrench dominance on platforms with massive user bases.

The Union’s formal announcement is expected in the coming days, although timing can change. If the inquiry finds breaches of EU competition law, it could lead to remedies or fines; under antitrust rules, penalties can reach a substantial share of a company’s global turnover. Meanwhile, the case will be closely watched as a test of how existing competition law handles the competitive effects of embedding AI into widely used digital services.