The U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched a formal investigation into Amazon’s (AMZN) artificial intelligence (AI) partnership with Anthropic. This move places the CMA among a growing number of government antitrust agencies scrutinizing the collaborations between major tech firms and AI startups.
The CMA announced on Thursday that it will investigate whether the Amazon-Anthropic partnership constitutes a merger. The watchdog is expected to reveal whether the partnership warrants a second phase of investigation by October 4.
Broader Regulatory Scrutiny on AI Collaborations
This investigation follows the CMA’s July announcement of a similar probe into the relationship between Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL) and Anthropic. Big tech companies’ AI partnerships are increasingly under the lens of antitrust regulators in the U.K., the U.S., and the European Union.
In addition to Amazon’s dealings, U.K. regulators are also scrutinizing Microsoft’s (MSFT) agreement with Inflection AI to determine if it qualifies as a merger. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is reportedly examining the Microsoft-Inflection AI arrangement as well.
Market Reaction
Amid the regulatory developments, Amazon’s shares saw a 1.3% increase, reaching $164.94 in early trading on Thursday. The stock has risen over 8% since the beginning of the year.
