AI ecosystem opaque, needs accountability: CCI chairperson

India must be careful not to overregulate, given its strong and growing startup ecosystem, and ensure any new framework is proportionate and tailored to local needs.

Photograph: Ann Wang/Reuters

The artificial intelligence (AI) ecosystem is opaque and needs to be made transparent and accountable, said Competition Commission of India’s (CCI) Chairperson Ravneet Kaur at the Business Standard Manthan Summit on Wednesday.

While recognising that there are multiple benefits of AI such as efficiency gains and sectoral improvements, Kaur cautioned that there could be negative consequences as well in terms of market competition.

In a fireside chat with Ruchika Chitravanshi, Kaur said, “Things have improved on numerous fronts (due to AI), especially when you look at sectors like healthcare, education, logistics, supply chain management — there are a lot of benefits that have come.”

She added, “But hidden in this is the fact that algorithmic collusion could be happening or there could be some targeted price discrimination.”

How CCI plans to use AI

The CCI is exploring ways to incorporate AI usage in its operations, she said.

“We’ve done a market study on AI and competition, so, we are also equipping ourselves to handle what could be the issues, which are going to come up very soon,” said Kaur.

The CCI released a market study report, conducted through the Management Development Institute Society, on AI and competition in October 2025 following consultations with stakeholders.

The report assessed how AI adoption affects competition dynamics and business operations, emerging competition issues related to AI, and how existing and evolving regulatory frameworks interact with AI.

However, Kaur also noted that the CCI is being cautious with usage of AI in its workings.

As a custodian of data, CCI is mindful of businesses providing commercially sensitive information, for which they request confidentiality, said Kaur.

“Sometimes the confidentiality they seek is permanent in time, so when we are handling data, we have to be careful.

“I cannot pick up any AI tool and start using it without knowing that data will not go out anywhere, so that safeguard has to be there,” she added.

CCI’s priorities

Additionally, Kaur said keeping up with technological advancements continues to be among the CCI’s priorities and the competition regulator is looking to work with a think tank on AI to receive expert inputs on how to keep up with rapid technological change.

She also said that the antitrust watchdog needs to induct new talent and that a proposal has been sent to the government for some capacity enhancement.

“I think that is one conversation we have been having internally that our dependence on these young professionals, who are coming for a short period of time, is not really the way to build an institutional memory,” she said.

The CCI may require data scientists and sector analysts for its digital markets division, as well as economists and legal experts.

Speaking on cross-border actions, Kaur highlighted that the Competition Act empowers the Indian regulator to take action against international companies if their operations has appreciable, adverse effects on competition in India.

“We are equipped to handle cross-border actions, coordination and also things that are having substantial effect in India,” said Kaur.

She added that the CCI has taken action against several big tech companies, with the most important one being CCI’s clampdown on Meta.

The CCI found WhatsApp’s 2021 privacy update to be an abuse of dominance for denying users’ choice.

It fined Meta, imposed a five-year bar on data sharing for ads, and ordered greater transparency and opt-out options.

How CCI identifies and deals with market dominance

Speaking about the way CCI identifies and deals with market dominance by businesses, Kaur said that it is not just a single metric like market share that the competition regulator looks at.

“So, we have this definition of dominance that says that you are dominant if you are able to act independently of markets.

“So, if the market impact is not there on you, and you can then affect your consumers and your clients accordingly.

“And this concept of dominance also is evolving, it’s a very dynamic thing. When we look at dominance, we do a very detailed exercise, based on numerous other factors,” said Kaur.

The CCI looks at the structure of the market, the level of integration of businesses, and also the size of competitors when assessing market dominance, said Kaur.

She added that the perspective of consumers is also included wherein the CCI looks at whether consumers have countervailing buying powers.

Kaur said India must adopt a balanced approach to ex-ante digital regulation, cautioning against copying global models without considering domestic realities.

She noted that frameworks such as the EU’s Digital Markets Act and the UK regime apply primarily to large ‘gatekeeper’ platforms and do not target startups or smaller technology firms.

India, she said, must be careful not to overregulate, given its strong and growing startup ecosystem, and ensure any new framework is proportionate and tailored to local needs.

Kaur highlighted existing safeguards within the competition regulator’s framework, including asset and turnover thresholds in merger control and the ‘green channel’ route, which grants deemed approval for combinations with no competitive overlap.

On enforcement, she said the CCI exercises restraint with micro, small, and medium enterprises, often issuing cease-and-desist orders rather than imposing monetary penalties.