Brazil court suspends antitrust ruling against Meta over WhatsApp Business

A ‍Brazilian court has suspended a preventive measure ⁠by antitrust body CADE that had barred Meta from restricting third-party artificial intelligence tools ‌on ‌WhatsApp Business, the company said.

WhatsApp ‌Business, the app's business version, had announced last year user terms banning AI providers and developers "from accessing or using" it. The court decision came as CADE investigates ‌alleged anticompetitive ‍practices by Meta ‍in new WhatsApp Business rules following complaints ‌from AI chatbot providers.

"We welcome the court decision suspending CADE's preventive measure. The facts do not justify intervention in Brazil or anywhere else," a ‍Meta spokesperson said in a statement.


Brazilian phone ‍numbers ⁠were initially ⁠exempted from AI tool restrictions last week, but that exception was no longer listed in WhatsApp's terms as of Friday.

CADE said it would comment after accessing the full ruling.