RTL Today – Bloc’s antitrust chief says: EU scrutinizes Microsoft-OpenAI cooperation more closely

The EU will examine the impact of Microsoft’s multibillion-dollar partnership with ChatGPT developer OpenAI on competition in the fast-growing artificial intelligence market, the bloc’s antitrust chief said on Friday.

However, after an initial investigation, the European Commission concluded that the $13 billion tie-up does not mean that the American tech giant has gained control over OpenAI.

“The key question was whether Microsoft took control of OpenAI permanently. After careful analysis… we concluded that this was not the case,” said EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager.

“So we are closing this chapter. But the point is that the story is not over,” she said in a speech in Brussels.

Instead, the EU requested more information from Microsoft about the deal between the two companies, Vestager said, “to find out whether certain exclusivity clauses could have an adverse effect on competition.”

She also added that the EU had sought more information about Google’s arrangements with Samsung to pre-install a simplified version of its artificial intelligence system, Gemini, on some devices manufactured by the South Korean giant.

Brussels wanted to understand the impact of so-called “employee acquisitions,” Vestager added, where a company acquires another company primarily to acquire key talent.

Earlier this year, Microsoft announced a deal to hire senior figures from OpenAI rival Inflection, including its CEO, to run a newly formed consumer AI unit. Unlike the merger, however, Inflection continues to operate as an independent company.

That means it does not face a traditional merger investigation that would give regulators the power to block a takeover.

The EU probe into Microsoft and OpenAI comes after a failed board coup last year against ChatGPT creator CEO Sam Altman, whom Microsoft had supported and even briefly hired.

American and British regulators are also looking at this cooperation.

Microsoft welcomed the conclusion of the EU investigation.

“We appreciate the detailed analysis by the European Commission and its conclusion that Microsoft’s investment and partnership with OpenAI do not give Microsoft control over the business,” a Microsoft spokesperson said.

“We stand ready to answer any additional questions the European Commission may have.”