The European Commission has told Meta it is considering interim measures that would stop the company from blocking third-party general-purpose AI assistants from WhatsApp, as the EU’s antitrust investigation continues.
On Monday, February 9, 2026, the Commission said it had sent Meta its preliminary view that the company breached EU antitrust rules. Any interim steps would still depend on Meta’s response and its rights of defense.
Teresa Ribera, the European Commission’s Executive Vice-President for a Clean, Just and Competitive Transition (who leads competition policy), said the aim is to stop dominant companies from using their position to tilt fast-moving markets in their favor—especially as AI services race to scale.
“AI markets are developing at rapid pace, so we also need to be swift in our action,” Ribera said, adding that interim measures could help preserve access for competitors to WhatsApp while the probe continues and avoid potential long-term damage to competition in Europe.
What the EU is looking at
The case centers on Meta’s WhatsApp Business Solution Terms. In October, Meta announced an update that the Commission says effectively banned third-party general-purpose AI assistants from WhatsApp. The restriction took effect January 15, 2026.
A Commission spokesperson said interim measures, if adopted, would likely require Meta to keep third-party AI assistants’ access to WhatsApp under the terms that applied before the policy change, while the investigation is still ongoing.
Meta pushes back
Meta argues the Commission shouldn’t intervene in the WhatsApp Business API, saying users can access AI assistants through many other routes, including app stores, operating systems, devices, websites, and partnerships. The company also disputes the idea that the WhatsApp Business API is a key distribution channel for these chatbots.