CCI Urges AI Self-Audits to Prevent Anti-Competitive Practices

"As an initial step we have issued a guidance note which provides self-audit by the stakeholders, by the boards, management and the decision makers in the organisations as to how they can ensure that at the stage of development, deployment and monitoring of those AI applications there aren't any hidden anti-competitive outcomes," Kaur said at the 11th National Conference on Economics of Competition Law organised by the regulator.

The guidance follows the CCI's market study on artificial intelligence and competition completed in October 2025, carried out in partnership with the Management Development Institute (MDI) Gurgaon. The study examined the rapid adoption of AI technologies and their potential implications for market competition.

Kaur said regulators must remain alert as the use of AI tools expands rapidly across sectors.

"When something is changing, and there is a huge transformation happening, then for us as a regulator we need to be aware of it and abreast of it," she said.

The study identified possible competition risks, including concentration in the AI value chain, targeted price discrimination, self-referencing practices and lack of transparency in AI systems, she said.

At the same time, AI offers significant benefits for businesses and consumers.

"There are huge benefits of AI. There are efficiency gains, it helps MSMEs access markets and reduces the cost of being a market player," Kaur said.

Kaur noted the Competition Act is an interdisciplinary law, combining legal provisions with economic principles to determine whether market conduct causes an Appreciable Adverse Effect on Competition (AAEC).

"Whenever we come to any analysis or conclusion, it has to be based on very rigorous economic analysis, looking at market structure, concentration levels and pricing strategies," she said.

The commission completed its first settlement case involving the Android smart TV ecosystem, where a dominant entity was found to have imposed conditions such as mandatory pre-installation of apps and restrictions on the use of forked Android devices.

"The purpose of settlement is that we have a quick market correction and competition is restored in the market without going through prolonged litigation," Kaur said.

The CCI has received 1,360 antitrust cases, of which 1,211 have been decided and disposed of, representing about 90% of the total.

Orders during the past year covered sectors including technology, booksellers and publishers, defence procurement, liquor and solid waste management, with actions ranging from penalties and cease-and-desist directives to compliance programmes.

On the mergers front, the regulator maintains a solution-oriented approach, seeking voluntary modifications to address competition concerns rather than blocking deals outright.

"Our merger disposal rate is more than 99%. Out of a total of 1,389 applications which have been received, 1,372 have been disposed of," Kaur said.

She added that the government's IndiaAI Mission is supporting AI development by providing compute platforms and GPUs to startups and developers, helping build a more open and competitive AI ecosystem.

- ANI