'AI may increase cartelization, fair competition is necessary for development', CCI chief's statement

Ravneet Kaur, Competition Commission chief has said that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is likely to increase cartelization. She added that predictive algorithms can help in cartelization. She stressed that the CCI is focusing on developing an ecosystem that promotes innovation and ensures transparency and accountability related to algorithms.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) works to prevent unfair business practices in the market. The CCI has also started a study on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and competition, which is expected to be completed by mid-2025. This study will consider various elements including AI in the field of logistics and algorithms. The CCI chief said that the use of algorithms alone may not be anti-competitive, but if the algorithms are manipulated, it is a competition issue.

Our focus is to create an ecosystem that guarantees algorithmic transparency and accountability while encouraging innovation, said CCI chief Ravneet Kaur. The CCI regulator is also strengthening its capabilities to address the challenges thrown up by new-age markets. Last week, the regulator's in-house Digital Markets and Data Unit (DMDU) was upgraded to a full-fledged Digital Markets Division (DMD) headed by an advisor. The landscape of regulatory technology is changing rapidly, and meanwhile, CCI also plans to hire more domain experts to assess competition.

Kaur said, 'Hiring of domain experts in areas like AI, data analytics and digital markets-recruitment is a priority. This will make sure CCI is future-ready and adequately equipped to deal with the challenges thrown up by rapidly evolving technologies. He said big tech and e-commerce pose immense challenges due to huge scale, complex ecosystem, and rapid innovation. However, CCI is trying to overcome these with a strong regulatory framework. According to the CCI's annual report, in 2023-24, CCI received 50 anti-trust notifications, out of which orders were passed in 33 cases regarding alleged anti-competitive conduct, and 101 combinations were settled.