Meta will allow AI chatbots to compete with WhatsApp in Europe, but for a fee

In an attempt to avoid a major investigation by the European Commission, Meta said on Thursday that it will allow AI companies to offer their WhatsApp chatbots via its business API over the next 12 months in Europe.

The move comes a month after the European Commission informed Meta that it intends to impose temporary measures to prevent the company from implementing its policy, which banned third-party chatbot providers from using the WhatsApp Business API to provide their services on WhatsApp.

“Over the next 12 months, we will support general-purpose chatbots using the WhatsApp Business API in Europe in response to the European Commission’s regulatory process,” the company said in an email statement. “We believe this eliminates the need for any immediate intervention as it gives the European Commission the time it needs to conclude its investigations.”

Meta says it will allow general-purpose chatbot providers to offer their services on WhatsApp for fees ranging from €0.0490 to €0.1323 per “non-template message,” depending on the country. Given the fact that conversations with AI assistants typically include dozens of messages, the bill can be expensive for third-party service providers.

“The Commission is analyzing the impact that these changes may have on its investigations related to interim measures, as well as on its broader antitrust investigation into this substance,” a European Commission spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

The policy change took effect on January 15, prompting several AI assistant providers to complain to regulators that it was disrupting their businesses and that the decision was anti-competitive.

It is worth noting that the policy does not apply to companies that use artificial intelligence to serve customers on WhatsApp. For example, a retailer that operates an AI-powered customer service bot that sends form messages will not be blocked from using the API. Only introducing AI chatbots like ChatGPT, Claude or Poke via API is prohibited.

This decision follows a similar move the company took in January, when it began allowing developers to leverage its API to offer their own chatbots in Italy.

Regulators around the world raised antitrust concerns after Meta announced the policy change last October, with the European Union, Italy and Brazil all launching investigations, especially as the company offers its own chatbot, Meta AI, on WhatsApp.

WhatsApp has in the past justified its position by arguing that AI-powered chatbots stress its systems in ways its Business API was not designed to support. “The AI ​​field is highly competitive, and people can access the services they choose in any number of ways, including app stores, search engines, email services, partnership integrations, and operating systems,” the company previously told TechCrunch.