Meta exempts Italy from WhatsApp AI ban as probes mount

Meta said it will temporarily exempt phone numbers registered with Italy’s country code (+39) from updated WhatsApp Business terms that would bar some third‑party AI chatbots from using the platform’s business solution. The carve-out follows an interim order from Italy’s competition authority and comes days before the new terms were due to take effect on January 15, 2026.

In a notice circulated to AI providers and developers, Meta said the country‑specific suspension is intended to comply with an interim measure issued by the Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM), which ordered Meta to pause enforcement of the policy inside Italy while it investigates potential market‑abuse concerns. AGCM declined to comment publicly while its probe is ongoing.

Meta first announced the policy change in October 2025, citing technical strain from a rapid proliferation of AI chatbots on WhatsApp. The company has said those systems placed a heavy load on infrastructure that was "not designed for such use." The terms would have barred AI companies whose primary offering is chatbots from using the WhatsApp Business Solution, a move that would have forced services built on that connection to withdraw from markets where the rules applied.

Regulators in other jurisdictions have moved quickly to challenge the policy. The European Commission has opened a formal antitrust probe into the new terms, and Brazil’s competition authority, CADE, applied a preventive measure that temporarily suspended enforcement there. Where regulators have halted the policy, third‑party services can continue operating on WhatsApp while investigations proceed.

The policy threatened a number of high‑profile integrations. OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which has served about 50 million users on WhatsApp, had signaled it would cease operations on the platform by the January deadline, and Microsoft announced plans to withdraw its Copilot service from affected markets. Meta’s Italy exemption means such removals are not required for Italian users while AGCM’s order remains in force.

Affected developers and AI companies have criticized the country‑specific approach. The Interaction Company of California, maker of the Poke.com assistant, filed complaints with both Italian and EU competition regulators and criticized Meta’s carve‑out as insufficient. Marvin von Hagen, co‑founder and CEO, called the move "deeply disappointing" and argued Meta should have paused the policy globally rather than applying a national exemption. He added that the Italian authority "has found Meta’s conduct to be at first glance anti‑competitive under EU law" and urged the European Commission to adopt interim measures.

The dispute reaches beyond a technical dispute over API load. Regulators and industry observers say the outcome of the AGCM and European Commission inquiries could set precedent for how major platform owners manage access to core messaging infrastructure when they also offer competitive AI products. If authorities find the terms unlawfully foreclose rivals, platforms may face limitations on how they structure business‑solution contracts and APIs to favor in‑house services.

For now, WhatsApp use in Italy will remain largely unchanged for third‑party chatbots while AGCM’s investigation continues. The broader European and global legal fights over platform control of AI access are only beginning, with potential consequences for competition, innovation, and how billions of messaging users interact with intelligent assistants.