The hiring of certain former employees from artificial intelligence startup Inflection by Microsoft has been referred for an initial merger investigation in the UK. Mustafa Suleyman, co-founder and CEO of Inflection AI UK Ltd., along with most of the startup’s staff, has been included in this assessment by Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The purpose of the investigation is to determine whether this hiring constitutes a merger under UK rules, potentially leading to reduced competition within the AI sector.
The CMA, responsible for regulating competition in the UK, has the authority to refer cases for an in-depth investigation, known as a “Phase 2” probe, if it finds sufficient grounds. A decision on whether to proceed with a Phase 2 investigation will be announced by the CMA on or before September 11.