BRUSSELS, April 16, 2026 — The European Commission has intensified its antitrust investigation into Meta by issuing a Supplementary Statement of Objections outlining plans to impose interim measures over the company’s treatment of third-party AI assistants on WhatsApp.
The move represents the latest step in the Commission’s probe into whether Meta abused a dominant position by restricting rival AI assistants’ ability to interact with WhatsApp users, potentially harming competition in the rapidly expanding market for AI-powered digital assistants.
Commission challenges revised access policy
The Commission said it intends to require Meta to restore access for third-party AI assistants under the same conditions that existed before a policy change introduced on 15 October 2025.
Although Meta revised its policy on 4 March 2026, lifting an outright ban but introducing a fee-based access system, the Commission has preliminarily concluded that the pricing model could have the same exclusionary effect as the previous ban.
According to the regulator, the policy risks preventing competitors from entering or expanding in the market for general-purpose AI assistants.
Interim measures under consideration
To prevent what it describes as serious and irreparable harm to competition, the Commission said it is considering interim measures that would require Meta to reinstate access for third-party assistants while the broader investigation continues.
If imposed, the measures would remain in force until the Commission reaches a final decision on the case. The authority emphasised that the supplementary objections do not prejudge the outcome of the investigation and that Meta will have the opportunity to respond and exercise its rights of defence.
Teresa Ribera said the situation illustrates the type of conduct that interim antitrust remedies are designed to address.
“Pushing out competitors in fast-evolving markets like AI is exactly the type of conduct that interim measures are designed to address,” Ribera said, adding that replacing a legal ban with pricing that produces a similar effect does not alter the Commission’s preliminary concerns.
Investigation expanded to entire EEA
In a related step, the Commission—working with the Italian Competition Authority—has expanded the investigation to include Italy. The probe will now cover the entire European Economic Area (EEA).
Italy had previously been excluded because its national authority had launched its own investigation into the matter.
Background to the case
The dispute stems from a 15 October 2025 update to WhatsApp Business terms, which effectively banned third-party general-purpose AI assistants from the platform starting 15 January 2026.
The Commission opened formal proceedings on 4 December 2025 and issued an initial Statement of Objections on 9 February 2026, indicating its preliminary view that Meta’s conduct may breach EU competition rules, including Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, which prohibits abuse of a dominant market position.
Meta responded to the earlier objections on 2 March 2026, before publishing its revised policy days later.
The Commission will now assess Meta’s response to the supplementary objections before deciding whether to impose interim measures while the investigation continues.
Source: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/da/ip_26_805
