Here in Washington (CNN) — As US antitrust officials increase their investigation of the booming AI industry, a source familiar with the situation has revealed that the FTC is looking into a recent Microsoft agreement involving the artificial intelligence startup Inflection.
According to two sources familiar with the situation, the inquiry is taking place at a time when antitrust regulators from the FTC and the Justice Department are reportedly close to reaching a final deal this week about the combined oversight of powerful artificial intelligence companies like OpenAI, Microsoft, Google, Nvidia, and so on.
Those in the know indicated that the FTC would be in charge of investigating Microsoft and OpenAI, and that the Department of Justice would be designated as the lead investigator for Nvidia under the still-pending deal. If there are any investigations, it will be to determine if the corporations have harmed competition in the AI market by abusing their dominant positions.
One of the sources indicated that Microsoft’s involvement in Inflection is being investigated by the FTC. The question is whether Microsoft concealed this fact from the government, as the business failed to report it as an acquisition.
Following Inflection’s March announcement that Microsoft had recruited several employees and co-founders of the company to head up its Copilot initiative, Microsoft went on to say that Microsoft’s cloud platform will house Inflection’s AI model. Supposedly, Microsoft paid Inflection $650 million as a component of the agreement.
A request for comment was not quickly responded to by Microsoft, Inflection, or Google. Nvidia and OpenAI chose not to comment.
The US agencies’ division-of-labor agreement allows for deeper investigations into a field that has excited investors, fascinated consumers, and sounded the alarm among those who believe AI requires immediate regulation to prevent discrimination, fraud, and significant job loss.
It also shows that, with new US laws regulating AI looking unlikely, enforcers are trying to use current laws against the business more and more. Many see the US as falling behind other countries in terms of artificial intelligence legislation, especially when compared to the EU, which has passed strict laws regarding the use of AI in potentially dangerous situations.
Major tech businesses’ potential monopolization of entire economic sectors has been a source of concern for regulators and technology skeptics for years. The result has been the US government suing prominent tech companies like Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, and Microsoft for antitrust violations.
In 2022, with the publication of ChatGPT by OpenAI, the rapidly expanding field of generative AI came to light. Some are concerned that tech corporations could exploit their dominant positions in society and business to further consolidate their control over the industry.
Some argue that exclusive relationships with AI startups are a means for big titans to exert anticompetitive influence in the AI sector. An ongoing inquiry by the FTC, announced in January, is investigating partnerships like Microsoft’s ties with OpenAI.
