Federal regulators have agreed to continue antitrust investigations into Microsoft, Open AI, and Nvidia’s roles in the AI industry, signaling increased scrutiny over the powerful technology. The Justice Department and FTC reached the agreement, with the Justice Department focusing on Nvidia, while the FTC will examine Open AI and Microsoft’s practices.
The investigation follows a surge in generative AI technology, which has stirred industry excitement but also raised concerns over its impact on jobs and consumers. Regulators are aiming to address potential risks early on, and have already initiated inquiries into Open AI’s data collection practices and tech giants’ partnerships with AI startups.
While the US lags behind Europe in AI regulation, recent legislative recommendations and calls for increased funding suggest a growing focus on maintaining American leadership in the technology. Despite concerns over potential antitrust issues, Nvidia, Open AI, and Microsoft have been key players in the AI boom, prompting questions about their market dominance.
Nvidia’s GPUs have become instrumental in AI tasks, leading to a surge in sales and stock prices, raising concerns over its market control and distribution practices. Microsoft’s strategic investments in Open AI have positioned the company as a major AI provider, integrating the chatbot technology into its own products and drawing scrutiny for potential antitrust implications.
Last week, the Justice Department held a conference on AI, highlighting the challenges posed by the vast data and computing power required by the technology. Regulators are aiming to address these challenges and prevent tech giants from gaining undue advantage through their AI market dominance.
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https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/05/technology/nvidia-microsoft-openai-antitrust-doj-ftc.html