U.S. Clears Way for Antitrust Inquiries of Nvidia, Microsoft and OpenAI
New York TimesJun 21
US to Probe Microsoft, Nvidia, OpenAI for Antitrust Breaches
Above: NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang attends the "AI Insight Forum" on Capitol Hill on September 13, 2023 in Washington, DC. Image copyright: Chip Somodevilla/Staff/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Facts
The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and US Dept. of Justice (DOJ) are preparing unprecedented regulatory scrutiny of tech giants Microsoft, OpenAI, and Nvidia and their conduct in the artificial intelligence (AI) sector.
The two agencies reportedly reached a deal last week, which will be completed in the coming days. The agreement ends a lengthy dispute over how AI oversight should be divided between the FTC and DOJ.
The Spin
Narrative A
Federal regulation becomes even more important when managing a development as significant as AI. Public concerns can be mitigated at this stage of the sector's blooming without being too invasive. The hyper-competition that ChatGPT's arrival has sparked needs to be monitored, and controlled, if necessary, to ensure that AI remains a responsible technology that benefits the world.
Narrative B
Antitrust agencies must allow the market to unfold instead of being self-righteously proactive and overbearing. Regulatory agencies often operate with considerable autonomy — allowing them to shape the dialogue and maintain a narrative of protecting consumer interests. They must be cautious not to go overboard and stifle a nascent and promising industry.