Despite her outreach, Big Tech companies like Amazon and Meta still view Khan as an obstacle, due to her previous work highlighting anticompetitive practices. Both companies have requested her recusal from any antitrust investigations into their practices, questioning her impartiality.
Key takeaways:
- Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan visited Silicon Valley to engage with tech community and reverse her reputation for being a scourge of Big Tech.
- Khan emphasized her focus on artificial intelligence and expressed concerns about a handful of companies controlling critical inputs into this technology, potentially impeding innovation and competition.
- Despite the FTC's hard line on what it views as unlawful mergers, Khan stressed that the agency's goals are aligned with innovators and entrepreneurs, and its laws aim to protect consumers and workers.
- Big Tech companies, particularly Amazon and Meta, view Khan, who has previously criticized Amazon’s practices as anticompetitive, as an impediment and have sought her recusal from any antitrust investigations into their practices.