Director of Europe and Transatlantic Partnerships Max von Thun urges Brussels to use its existing powers under competition law and the Digital Markets Act to challenge Big Tech’s growing influence over AI in this article.

At the end of last year, negotiators finally agreed on the AI Act after many months of protracted negotiations. The EU deserves credit for passing what stands as the world’s first serious effort to impose binding guardrails on artificial intelligence, including the foundation models that are currently at the centre of attention.

Recent reports have raised the prospect that last year’s deal could still unravel due to opposition from a few stubborn member states. But putting this worrying possibility aside, the AI Act will still take several years to have a meaningful impact. The Act’s obligations for General Purpose AI Systems will not take effect until the middle of next year at the earliest, while most of its provisions will only apply from mid-2026 onwards.

Given the speed and scale with which artificial intelligence is developing and being rolled out, waiting until the AI Act applies to take action is not an option for Europe. Already, a handful of tech giants are exploiting their existing dominance over computing infrastructure, data, and talent to seize control of the emerging AI ecosystem, including co-opting potential challengers through exclusive partnerships and investments.

This Big Tech-led AI arms race is already amplifying many of today’s online harms, including disinformation, surveillance advertising, anti-competitive conduct, and the undermining of copyright and privacy. But it is also likely to create new ones, as the promise of this new technology is distorted by a monopolistic market structure and the toxic business models of a few gatekeepers.

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