Two United States senators have asked Microsoft and Google to provide details about their cloud computing partnerships with AI companies, citing concerns these deals could hinder competition in the rapidly evolving AI industry.
Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ron Wyden—the ranking Democrats on the Senate Banking and Finance Committees—sent letters requesting that Google and Microsoft provide information on their cloud computing partnerships with AI companies.
“We are concerned that corporate partnerships within the AI sector discourage competition, circumvent our antitrust laws, and result in fewer choices and higher prices for businesses and consumers using AI tools,” the senators wrote.
No official response was immediately received from the companies.
The letters aim to determine how much AI companies have paid to cloud providers like Microsoft and Google, whether those deals grant the tech giants exclusive rights to license AI models, and if there are any intentions by these companies to acquire their AI partners.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission released a staff report in January, prior to President Donald Trump taking office, examining the partnerships between Microsoft and OpenAI, Amazon and Anthropic, and Google and Anthropic, but withheld company-specific information from the public.
The report suggested that a cloud service provider might eventually acquire its AI partner, and noted that at least one AI company had given its cloud provider advance notice of key decisions.
The FTC stated that at least one agreement restricts the AI company from launching new models independently, requiring them to release the models through the cloud provider instead.
