Meta’s USD 14.8 bn investment in Scale AI is raising regulatory eyebrows: Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta has acquired a 49% non-voting stake in Scale AI — a data-labeling and model evaluation firm that works with several of Meta’s competitors — and brought on board its CEO, Alexandr Wang, Reuters reports. The transaction gives Meta deep access to AI talent and infrastructure without triggering a formal antitrust review, since Meta also secured a minority stake.

Why this matters: The move is being described as a textbook “acquihire” — a transaction structure that lets Big Tech absorb talent and strategic assets without triggering the usual regulatory reviews. While Meta didn’t snap up a controlling stake, critics argue the transaction could still distort competition, especially since companies like Microsoft and OpenAI rely on Scale’s services. Alphabet has reportedly ended its business with Scale in response to the transaction.

Regulators may still step in: Though the Federal Trade Commission hasn’t formally challenged the agreement, it has probed similar acquisitions in the past — including Microsoft’s USD 650 mn tie-up with AI firm Inflection AI. Legal analysts say Meta’s decision to avoid a controlling stake offers some protection, but not immunity, especially if the move is seen as limiting rivals’ access to key infrastructure.

The political calculus: Legal experts say Meta may be banking on a looser regulatory climate under a second Trump term — “Trump's antitrust enforcers have said they do not want to regulate how AI develops, but have also displayed a suspicion of large tech platforms,” Director of the Competition Law Center at George Washington University William Kovacic told Reuters.

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