The following statement can be attributed to George Rakis, Executive Director for NextGen Competition (nextgencomp.tech):

We're proud to join our coalition partners in calling for investigations into Big Tech's effort to rapidly consolidate its power in the artificial intelligence space. Companies like Meta, Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Amazon have taken significant ownership stakes in AI firms to consolidate power, minimize the chance of being displaced by start-ups, and seek dominance over this increasingly important technology.

The Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice Antitrust Division must proactively shield consumers from anti-competitive corporate practices. Big Tech's substantial investments in AI companies extend beyond mere strategic choices—they constitute a deliberate effort to circumvent antitrust scrutiny. As outlined in our letter, we find it deeply concerning that such a critical emerging field as AI development is already heavily concentrated within a select few of the world's largest corporations. Immediate investigations into this trend are essential to preserving innovation and competition while protecting consumers.

A copy of the letter is available here.

About NextGen Competition

Our mission is to support a robust and competitive technology ecosystem by opposing anti-competitive business practices and promoting greater industry accountability. Specifically, we oppose consolidation in the industry that undermines worker protections and employer accountability, threatens data privacy and security, encourages market concentration, and limits consumer choice. NextGen Competition intends to work with a broad coalition of unions and public interest partners as it seeks to oppose anti-competitive business practices.