WhatsApp won't let you delete Meta's artificial intelligence (AI) from the chat messenger, but officials in the European Union could allow you to choose a more familiar AI assistant.
The European Commission has ordered Meta's popular messaging service, WhatsApp, to grant free access to rival AI services until the end of an ongoing antitrust investigation.
"In rapidly evolving markets, competition can be lost long before a final decision is adopted," said EU competition chief Teresa Ribera on Tuesday.
The measure will "safeguard competition in the growing market for AI assistants, by preserving a key entry point to reach consumers in Europe – WhatsApp – and allowing AI companies to innovate, scale up and reach their full potential," the European Commission vice president said.
Parent company Meta, which also owns Facebook and Instagram, has to comply with the order within five working days, the commission said.
In 2023, WhatsApp began rolling out Meta AI to users as a blue circle icon in the app. This feature cannot be disabled, nor can it be replaced with other AI chatbots such as Gemini, ChatGPT or Claude.
Meta updated the terms for users in January so that now only the tech giant's own AI assistant is available on the platform.
The EU's executive arm has been investigating Meta for alleged breaches of EU competition law after the US tech giant announced it would block access to rival AI providers.
'Risk' to fair competition
In April, the commission threatened to impose interim measures on WhatsApp after Meta said that it is to reinstate access subject to the payment of a fee. The introduction of a fee "is in practice equivalent to the previous access ban," the commission said.
"There is an urgent need to prevent a risk of serious damage to the competitive structure in the growing market for general-purpose AI assistants," a press release said.
"Meta's policy change risks harming competition at a key time for the development of that market, where smaller players and new entrants can challenge large incumbents," the statement said.
If the investigation eventually confirms that Meta has breached EU competition law, the commission can impose penalties on the US company.
There is no deadline or legal time limit for antitrust investigations in the European Union.
EU proceedings are also under way against Meta for suspected breaches of the bloc's digital laws.
In October, the commission announced that Meta could face heavy fines for a lack of data transparency and its handling of illegal content on Facebook and Instagram.
The commission also suspects that the US company may be breaching rules on the protection of minors including insufficiently protecting children and young people from addictive algorithms.
How to manage Meta AI on WhatsApp
For anyone who doesn't plan on using Meta's lesser-known AI assistant, it is best not to tap on it at all or to involve the chatbot in group chats using @MetaAI.
Neither the symbol nor the entire Meta AI integration can be removed or deactivated from the app at this time.
Anyone who has already agreed to the terms of use and privacy policy and chatted with Meta AI can only delete individual AI chats, Meta says in WhatsApp's help section.
To do this, swipe the chat to the left, select "More/Delete" (Android) or directly "Delete" (iOS), and confirm.
As with any interaction with AI, it is important to note that some AI-generated messages may be "potentially incorrect or inappropriate," according to WhatsApp's help section.
Additionally, personal, sensitive or confidential data should not be shared in AI chats. If such information has already been entered into the chat, users should not only delete the respective individual AI chats from their device but also request the deletion of the information shared with Meta AI from Meta itself.
