The competition regulator in the UK is worried about the control big tech companies have over the fast-growing artificial intelligence (AI) market.
They’re particularly concerned about a type of AI called foundation models, which are used for things like generating text and images, like ChatGPT.
The regulator found that a small group of big tech companies like Google, Apple, Microsoft, Meta (formerly Facebook), Amazon, and chip-maker Nvidia, are deeply involved in AI partnerships.
The head of the regulator, Sarah Cardell, said they started out curious but now have serious concerns about how these powerful AI tools are being used.
These foundation models are trained on huge amounts of data and are behind tools that are changing how we work and live.
Big tech companies have a lot of computing power and skilled workers, which gives them a big advantage in the market.
This could lead to unfair competition, less choice, lower quality, and higher prices for consumers.
The regulator wants to learn from past experiences where a small number of big platforms took over digital markets.
They’re determined to make sure this doesn’t happen with AI, which they see as a very important technology.
The regulator found that these big tech companies have made lots of investments and partnerships together.
They’re already looking into a multi-billion dollar deal between Microsoft and OpenAI.
But they also recognize that these companies have a lot of resources and can bring innovation, so they shouldn’t be protected from competition.
