backOn February 9, 2026, the European Commission announced that it may impose interim measures requiring Meta to grant rival artificial intelligence chatbots access to WhatsApp, as part of an antitrust investigation launched in late 2025. The authority indicated that Meta may have abused its dominant position by restricting independent AI services from accessing the messaging platform while favoring its own assistant, Meta AI, in potential breach of EU competition rules.
The dispute stems from changes to WhatsApp’s terms of service announced in October and effective as of January 15, 2026, which prevent business users from deploying third-party AI services within the platform. The Commission stated that the contemplated measures aim to prevent serious and irreparable harm to competition in the emerging AI assistant market. Meta denied any violation of European competition law, arguing that users can access AI services through multiple alternative distribution channels.
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