Italy's Competition Authority (AGCM) has ordered Meta to suspend its controversial policy that prohibits third-party companies from distributing general-purpose AI chatbots via WhatsApp's business API, citing preliminary evidence of abuse of a dominant position that could cause “serious and irreparable damage” to competition in the AI services market.
The decision, announced on Wednesday (December 24, 2025), means that the October policy change will affect rivals such as OpenAI (ChatGPT), Anthropic (Claude), Perplexity and smaller players such as Poke. It stems from an ongoing investigation (expanding from an earlier investigation into Meta's data practices) that began in November 2025 to investigate whether Yer unreasonably restricts WhatsApp's access to its huge user base.
“Meta's actions appear to constitute fraud because they have the potential to limit production, market access, and technology development in the AI chatbot services market, to the detriment of consumers,” AGCM said. “Furthermore, while the investigation is ongoing, Meta's conduct could seriously and irreparably harm competition in the affected markets and impair competitiveness.”
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The policy, scheduled to take effect in January 2026, will block the integration of non-business-specific AI chatbots through the WhatsApp Business API, effectively preventing users from directly accessing third-party generative AI tools within the app.
Business-oriented AI applications, such as customer service bots for retailers, will still be allowed.
Meta was quick to condemn the ruling as “fundamentally flawed,” arguing that Business API was never intended as a distribution platform for consumer AI chatbots.
“The advent of AI chatbots in our business APIs is putting a strain on our systems that they were not designed to support,” a company spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “The Italian authorities assume that WhatsApp is somehow a de facto app store. The route for AI companies to enter the market is not through the WhatsApp business platform, but through the app store itself, its website and industry partnerships. We intend to appeal.”
Italy's action coincides with a parallel scrutiny by the European Commission, which launched a formal investigation on December 11, 2025, into whether Meta's restrictions “prevent third-party AI providers from offering services via WhatsApp within the European Economic Area (EEA).”
The city of Brussels has raised concerns under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which designates Meta's messaging service as a “gatekeeper” platform that requires fair access from competitors, and could result in fines of up to 10% of global revenue if found in violation.
WhatsApp has more than 2 billion monthly active users around the world and is by far the most popular in Europe (particularly in Italy, where it is used by more than 85% of smartphone owners), making it an important distribution channel for AI services.
This policy change threatens to integrate MetaAI, which has been natively integrated into WhatsApp since mid-2025, as a default option, potentially forcing users to switch apps and platforms to alternative AI tools and stifling innovation and consumer choice.
The AGCM's precautionary measures require Meta to suspend enforcement pending the results of a full investigation, and could result in fines of up to 10% of its annual global turnover (approximately 13.8 billion euros, based on 2024 figures) if any wrongdoing is confirmed.
Meta must comply and submit findings within 30 days.
Analysts see the order as a major victory for AI competitors and a test case for DMA enforcement.
Meta shares fell slightly in after-hours trading, reflecting investor concerns about rising antitrust risks in Europe. The company has vowed to challenge the decision through administrative and judicial channels and may escalate the matter to the European Court of Justice if necessary.
The increased regulatory pressure, which coincides with ongoing DMA litigation over Apple's App Store rules and Google's ad tech practices, further exacerbates the tensions between Washington and Brussels that intensified this week following targeted visa bans on EU policymakers.
