Big Tech's 'interconnected web' of AI investments concerns UK's CMA

Britain’s antitrust watchdog warned that investments in artificial intelligence by the likes of Alphabet Inc.’s Google, Apple Inc., and Microsoft Corp. warrant deeper scrutiny over concerns they are being leveraged to further entrench their market power.
 

The Competition and Markets Authority said Thursday it’s uncovered an “interconnected web” of partnerships and investments within AI involving a handful of the same tech firms, that may allow them “to shape these markets in their own interests.” Meta Platforms Inc., Amazon.com Inc. and Nvidia Corp. were also named. 

The findings follow a review into AI foundation models — AI systems that can be adapted to a range of tasks — to root out any potential competition issues in the fast-growing market. The CMA said it wanted to learn from the past in digital markets, where a winner-takes-all dynamic led to the rise of a small number of all-powerful platforms.

“When we started this work, we were curious. Now, with a deeper understanding and having watched developments very closely, we have real concerns,” said Sarah Cardell, chief executive officer of the CMA.

Cardell’s remarks reflect concerns around how the biggest US tech companies have acquired stakes in many of the most promising AI startups, deals that involve both funding and strategic access to infrastructure.  

Microsoft is OpenAI’s biggest backer, has invested in French AI startup Mistral and recently hired most of the team from Inflection AI. Google, owner of the AI lab DeepMind, has invested in OpenAI rival Anthropic, as has Amazon. Chipmaker Nvidia has backed dozens of startups, including large language model platform Cohere. 

Such deals may attract less regulatory scrutiny than full acquisitions, though the EU is probing Microsoft over the nature of its relationship to OpenAI and is keeping an eye on its Mistral partnership despite not seeing any immediate concerns. Margrethe Vestager, the bloc’s antitrust chief said Thursday that AI is going to change the marketplace and regulators need to be vigilant.

“We see a lot of entrenched market power when it comes to technology,” Vestager said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. “It’s basically a new world that we’re looking into” and regulators need “to make sure it’s a competitive new world.”

Across the Atlantic, the US Federal Trade Commission has also started inquiries into Alphabet, Amazon and Microsoft’s AI partners. The CMA, meanwhile, has a separate initial investigation into Microsoft’s OpenAI investment. 

The CMA will be assessing the market over the coming months and may use existing merger and investigations reviews to intervene. It is also considering whether to include this behavior in its new powers under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill that will come into force this summer.

“We welcome the clarity and transparency provided by the report and look forward to engaging constructively with the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority on applying its principles in our business,” a Microsoft spokesperson said.