U.S. Federal Regulators Open Antitrust Investigations Against Microsoft, NVIDIA, and OpenAI
Federal regulators are opening antitrust investigations against Microsoft, NVIDIA, and OpenAI over their dominant positions in the artificial intelligence industry. Find out more about the development and its potential impact on the sector.
- The FTC and the DoJ have agreed to investigate OpenAI, Microsoft, and NVIDIA’s roles in the artificial intelligence sector.
- Microsoft has invested around $13 billion in OpenAI and has made several deals with other AI companies.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Justice Department (DoJ) have reached a deal that will result in investigations into potential antitrust violations by Microsoft, NVIDIA, and OpenAI. The investigations will examine the dominant roles that these companies are playing in the artificial intelligence (AI) sector.
As per the deal, the Justice Department will lead the investigation into NVIDIA’s actions as the largest producer of AI chips. On the other hand, the FTC will investigate Microsoft and OpenAI, with the former investing significant resources into deals with other companies working in the AI space. Several industry players have raised concerns about NVIDIA’s dominance, particularly with practices of chip distribution and features that lock customers into using its products. Microsoft, on the other hand, owns 49% of OpenAI.
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The investigations highlight the growing scrutiny by federal regulators in the artificial intelligence sector, owing to its disruptive nature in multiple industries. Both the DOJ and the FTC have been leading the charge under the Biden administration to keep tabs on the leading tech companies, including investigations against Meta, Amazon, Apple, and Google.
While the U.S. lags behind Europe regarding AI laws, regulators are increasingly pushing to stay ahead of any developments in artificial intelligence. While NVIDIA, OpenAI, and Microsoft have largely avoided regulatory oversight until now, the major changes brought about by generative AI have changed perspectives.
This is not the first time companies in the AI sector have been investigated. The FTC has investigated the data collection practices of OpenAI, and another probe into Microsoft’s investments into OpenAI and Amazon and Google’s investment into Anthropic. You can find out more about Positive Technologies’ report here.
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