The news: The European Commission has designated ChatGPT as a “very large online search engine” after it reached 45 million monthly users, crossing the threshold for stricter oversight.
Forum website Reddit and gaming service Roblox also met the threshold and were designated “very large online platforms”.
All three businesses have until the end of the year to comply with the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA). The rules require large platforms to assess and mitigate risks from their services and algorithms, including harm to minors and the spread of illegal content.
The Commission will also gain investigative powers to examine how the services and their algorithms work.
Henna Virkkunen, executive vice-president for tech sovereignty, security and democracy, said the Commission was watching the digital landscape closely and would not hesitate to designate platforms that meet the threshold.
The context: Some platforms owned by AI hyperscalers — including Meta, Google and Microsoft — are already designated under the DSA, but ChatGPT is the first standalone AI service to meet the threshold.
Despite not being a “very large” platform, SpaceX-owned chatbot Grok is facing a DSA investigation into its alleged spread of sexualised images of women and children.
What they said: These new designations mean that ChatGPT, Reddit and Roblox will now be held to a higher standard of scrutiny and accountability in the European Union, in line with their large impact on our citizens and society,” Virkkunen said.