The United States government is ramping up its antitrust scrutiny of major technology firms in the rapidly growing field of artificial intelligence (AI). According to the New York Times, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have agreed to split up investigations into potential anti-competitive conduct by some of the industry’s biggest players.
To prevent monopolies from forming, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) are launching major antitrust investigations. They’ve agreed to split up the cases:
- DOJ to Investigate Nvidia’s AI Chip Dominance
- FTC to Scrutinize Microsoft-OpenAI Partnership
This broad antitrust crackdown highlights growing regulatory fears that the transformative AI technology could become dominated by a handful of entrenched tech behemoths. Regulators aim to prevent a repeat of what they believe has already occurred in other digital markets like social media, online advertising, e-commerce, and internet search.
Microsoft’s $13 Billion OpenAI Investment Under Scrutiny
At the center of the FTC’s probe is Microsoft’s $13 billion investment in OpenAI, the startup behind ChatGPT. Regulators want to know if this partnership, which integrates OpenAI’s tech into Microsoft products like Bing, gives the companies an unfair competitive advantage.
There are also questions about whether the OpenAI deal intentionally avoided antitrust reviews. Plus, the FTC is looking into Microsoft’s $650 million agreement to license AI from Inflection AI and hire many of its employees.
Nvidia’s Potential for AI Chip Monopoly
While Microsoft faces heat for its OpenAI ties, Nvidia is being scrutinized over fears it could monopolize the market for advanced AI chips. With an estimated 90% market share, Nvidia controls who gets these crucial computing components.
The chipmaker admits to prioritizing customers able to use the chips right away to avoid hoarding. But competitors argue Nvidia could abuse its dominance to undermine rivals.
Preventing History from Repeating Itself
Jonathan Kanter, the DOJ’s antitrust chief, says urgent action is needed to ensure AI innovation isn’t strangled by a few players calling the shots, like in digital markets of the past.
“Sometimes the most meaningful intervention is when it’s in real time,” Kanter stated, suggesting proactive, precise enforcement rather than harsh crackdowns later.
Potential areas of AI Antitrust concern:
- How data is used to train large language models
- Control over cloud computing resources for AI
- Allocation of scarce, high-end AI chips
- “Acqui-hiring” of AI startup employees
- Potential conflicts of interest in chipmakers’ customer prioritization
The inquiries could expand to examine AI’s impact across industries, including news publishers’ objections to Google’s AI article summaries.
As artificial intelligence upends sector after sector, governments are determined to foster competition from the outset. The wide-ranging investigations represent a pivotal juncture in preventing the next Microsofts and Googles from arising unchallenged in the AI era.
“We need to be urgent about this,” Kanter warned of allowing AI dominance. How the probes unfold could shape the trajectory of one of the 21st century’s most transformative technologies.