European Union: European Commission issued Statement of Objections regarding interim measures against Meta over alleged exclusion of third-party AI from WhatsApp

On 8 February 2026, the European Commission sent a statement of objections to Meta regarding its intention to impose interim measures to address the alleged exclusion of third-party Artificial Intelligence (AI) assistants from the WhatsApp messaging platform. The Commission’s preliminary assessment indicates that Meta may have restricted third-party AI assistants’ access to and interaction with users, potentially raising concerns under European Union (EU) antitrust rules. The Commission considers that Meta is likely to hold a dominant position in the European Economic Area (EEA) market for consumer communication applications through WhatsApp, which functions as a key access point for AI services to reach users. Limiting access to the platform could create barriers to entry and expansion for other providers. The Commission has identified a potential need for interim measures to prevent harm to competition while the full investigation continues. This inquiry follows changes to the WhatsApp Business Solution Terms announced on 15 October 2025 and applied on 15 January 2026, which reportedly led to the removal of competing general-purpose AI assistants, leaving only Meta AI available on the application. The statement of objections covers the EEA, except Italy, where the national competition authority is carrying out a separate review. Meta has the opportunity to respond to the preliminary findings and present a defence. The issuance of these measures does not determine the final outcome of the investigation.