Exclusive: Klobuchar, Dems press antitrust agencies on generative AI
Sen. Amy Klobuchar on April 30. Photo: Shannon Finney/Getty Images for RIAA
A group of Democratic senators led by Sen. Amy Klobuchar is urging the FTC and Justice Department to investigate whether generative AI violates antitrust law, per a letter shared first with Axios.
The big picture: Klobuchar has long been focused on the impact of digital platforms on journalism and pushed for competition bills that would help traditional media compete for digital advertising more successfully with the likes of Google and Meta.
- Sens. Richard Blumenthal, Mazie Hirono, Dick Durbin, Sheldon Whitehouse, Tammy Duckworth, Elizabeth Warren and Tina Smith also signed the letter addressed to FTC chair Lina Khan and DOJ antitrust chief Jonathan Kanter.
What they're saying: The senators mainly focus on how generative AI can impact journalism and how it repackages online information, spitting it back out as part of a generative AI result.
- They want the DOJ and FTC to investigate whether certain genAI features "are a form of exclusionary conduct or an unfair method of competition."
- "The introduction of these new generative AI features further threatens the ability of journalists and other content creators to earn compensation for their vital work," the lawmakers wrote.
- "Moreover, some generative AI features misappropriate third-party content and pass it off as novel content generated by the platform's AI."
What's next: Pushing for agencies to examine how genAI impacts an already-hurting space is Klobuchar's next foray into tackling journalism competition issues.
- Agencies are already looking into how big tech companies' deals to acquire or absorb AI firms may have violated antitrust laws.
