United States of America: FTC Issues Section 6(b) Orders to Five Companies for Information on AI Investments and Partnerships

On 25 January 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued orders to five companies, including Alphabet, Inc., Amazon.com, Inc., Anthropic PBC, Microsoft Corp., and OpenAI, Inc., requiring them to provide information on recent investments and partnerships involving generative AI companies and major cloud service providers. The FTC's Section 6(b) inquiry aims to scrutinize these corporate partnerships and investments to better understand their impact on the competitive landscape. The orders were issued under Section 6(b) of the FTC Act, which authorizes the Commission to conduct studies to gain a deeper understanding of market trends and business practices. The companies have 45 days from the date they receive the order to respond.