The European Commission (EC) has published two Calls concerning the sharing of experiences and feedback on the level of competition in the context of virtual worlds and generative artificial intelligence (AI).

Virtual worlds refer to a simulated environment on the Internet, which users can inhabit with their avatars (example: Metaverse). Generative AI is a type of artificial inteligence used to create content (Example: ChatGPT).

As stated, the EC has already contacted several significant digital players, and information is being collected from as many others as possible, in order to get a clear picture of how competition law guarantees that these new markets (virtual worlds and generative AI) remain competitive.

Those interested, who wish to contribute to this topic, can submit their responses to the Invitations by March 11. And the next step, in the second quarter of 2024, should be workshops on the same topic – which should contribute to the collection and comparison of all different perspectives.

In this context, the EC is already taking a close look at some of the biggest contracts in the digital market that have already been concluded and have begun to influence the dynamics of the market. So the focus is on whether Microsoft’s investment in OpenAI should be reviewed in accordance with EU regulations.

You can find out more information by reading the official Press Release, and it is interesting that the EC has also opened a special page for “Europe’s digital future”, with the topics between technology and competition law.