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Meta’s $14.8 Billion Scale AI Deal Raises Regulatory Questions Amid AI Partnership Scrutiny

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Meta’s $14.8 billion investment in data-labeling startup Scale AI, along with hiring its CEO, poses a test of the Trump administration’s stance on so-called “acquihire” deals—arrangements that some critics argue are used to bypass antitrust scrutiny.

The deal, announced Thursday, gives Meta a 49% nonvoting stake in Scale AI, which employs gig workers to manually label data and serves major clients including Meta’s rivals Microsoft and OpenAI. Because Meta does not gain a controlling stake, the transaction avoids mandatory U.S. antitrust review. Still, regulators could investigate if they suspect the deal was structured to sidestep rules or harm competition.

The structure aims to prevent Meta from cutting off competitors’ access to Scale’s services or gaining undue insight into rival operations. Despite this, Reuters reported that Alphabet’s Google has decided to sever ties with Scale following Meta’s investment, while other customers are reconsidering their relationships.

Scale AI stated its business remains strong and that it is committed to protecting customer data. Scale’s 28-year-old CEO Alexandr Wang will join Meta as part of the deal but will remain on Scale’s board with restricted access to sensitive information.

Experts say that while the Trump administration’s antitrust enforcers are cautious of big tech platforms, they generally want to avoid overregulating AI development. William Kovacic, competition law expert at George Washington University, noted regulators will watch these partnerships closely but might not intervene if they do not stifle competition.

Previous FTC inquiries into “acquihire” deals under the Biden administration—including Amazon’s hiring from AI startup Adept and Microsoft’s $650 million deal with Inflection AI—have so far resulted in no enforcement action.

Boston College Law professor David Olson highlighted Meta’s choice of a minority, nonvoting stake as a legal shield, though he acknowledged the FTC could still seek to review the deal.

The investment has drawn criticism from U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren, who called for scrutiny to ensure Meta does not unlawfully suppress competition or increase monopoly power. Meta is already facing an FTC monopoly lawsuit, but whether regulators will challenge this specific investment remains unclear.

Separately, the U.S. Department of Justice’s antitrust division is probing whether Google’s partnership with chatbot maker Character.AI was structured to evade regulatory review and is seeking advance notice of Google’s AI investments as part of broader efforts to rein in the company’s dominance.

Mexico Closes Antitrust Case Against Google, No Fines Imposed

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Mexico’s Federal Economic Competition Commission (Cofece) announced on Friday the closure of its multi-year antitrust investigation into Google, clearing the tech giant of allegations related to monopolistic practices in the country. The probe, initiated in 2020, focused on Google’s digital advertising services both on its search engine and third-party websites.

Cofece’s investigation examined whether Google’s advertising platform design gave it an unfair advantage over competitors in the digital advertising market. The watchdog concluded that advertisers were not compelled to purchase ads on third-party sites to advertise on Google’s search engine, effectively negating claims of monopoly abuse.

A Google spokesperson welcomed the decision, stating, “We appreciate COFECE’s decision recognizing that our products give advertisers the freedom and control to use our tools in the ways that best suit their needs.”

Had Cofece found Google guilty, the company could have faced fines up to 8% of its annual revenue in Mexico. Although Alphabet does not publicly disclose specific revenue for Mexico, its “other Americas” region, which includes Latin America, generated approximately $20.4 billion in 2024.

Google continues to face antitrust scrutiny worldwide. In the United States, courts have ruled that Google holds unlawful monopolies in online search and advertising technologies. U.S. regulators have pushed for measures including data sharing and divestitures of key advertising assets to foster competition.

China Postpones Approval of $35 Billion Synopsys-Ansys Merger Amid Rising Trade Tensions

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China’s State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) has delayed its approval of the $35 billion merger between U.S. software companies Synopsys and Ansys, according to a Financial Times report on Friday. The move comes after U.S. President Donald Trump tightened export controls targeting China’s access to advanced semiconductor design software and other sensitive technologies.

The delay underscores the escalating trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies, even as they reached a tentative trade truce during talks in London earlier this week. The current dispute follows China’s previous curbs on mineral exports, prompting the Trump administration to respond with additional restrictions. These include stricter controls on exports of semiconductor design software — a key area of Synopsys’s business — as well as jet engines and various advanced goods destined for China.

The Synopsys-Ansys merger had reached the final stage of the Chinese regulatory process and was widely expected to receive approval by the end of June. However, U.S. actions in late May banning chip design software sales to China added new complications to the review, according to sources cited by the Financial Times.

Neither Synopsys nor Ansys have publicly commented on the reported delay. Reuters, which also attempted to verify the report, said Synopsys declined to comment, while Ansys and Chinese regulators have not responded to inquiries.

The Trump administration’s latest export controls form part of a broader strategy aimed at limiting China’s access to technologies that could enhance its semiconductor manufacturing capabilities and, potentially, its military strength. Washington has also revoked export licenses previously granted to certain suppliers, significantly tightening restrictions on U.S. technology shipments to China.

In a separate development, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) last month required Synopsys and Ansys to divest certain assets to address domestic antitrust concerns related to the merger. Synopsys CEO has previously confirmed that the company has obtained regulatory clearances for the deal in all jurisdictions except China.

The $35 billion merger, if completed, would combine two of the most important players in electronic design automation (EDA) and engineering simulation software — sectors crucial for the development of next-generation semiconductors and complex industrial systems.