Background
      
            

Following the decision to start inquiries ex officio into the competitive functioning of the conversational agents sector, as announced on 9 January 2026, the Autorité de la concurrence is launching a public consultation, as part of the preparation of its opinion.



Stakeholders are invited to submit their responses to the public consultation by 6 March 2026 to the following address: consultation-agents-conversationnels@autoritedelaconcurrence.fr.



 
      
      

                
          
        
            Public consultation open until 6 March 2026



The purpose of the public consultation is to gather feedback from stakeholders on conversational agents, in respect of a range of issues.



For the questions submitted to public consultation, see the dedicated public consultation document:


	In French: format .docx (Word) / format .pdf
	In English: format .docx (Word) / format .pdf




Contributions will not be published. Their authors (names of companies or organisations) may, if appropriate, be cited in the opinion, unless they expressly indicate otherwise.

Artificial intelligence, a key sector for the Autorité de la concurrence



As a reminder, the upcoming opinion follows on from Opinion 24-A-05 of 28 June 2024, in which the Autorité analysed the competitive functioning of the generative artificial intelligence (AI) sector, in particular the upstream segment of the value chain, and its December 2025 study on the competition issues surrounding the energy and environmental impact of AI.



The Autorité will analyse, specifically, the downstream segment of the value chain and, in particular, the development and use of conversational agents. It will also examine the integration of advertising into conversational agents, the integration of conversational agents into existing services, partnerships formed by publishers of conversational agent developers, and the evolution and transformation of conversational agents.



Lastly, the Autorité will study the competition issues associated with the use of conversational agents in the e-commerce sector. However, the relationship between conversational agents and search engines is not within the scope of the consultation.
      
      
      

                
          
  
    Contact(s)
          
                
          
              
          
        
              


      
      
      
  
    
      
            Nicola Crawford
      
      
            Communications Officer
      
    
    
      
            +33155040151
      
      
     Contact us by e-mail

French Competition Authority Seeks Input on Conversational Agents

The Autorité de la concurrence has initiated a public consultation as part of its inquiries into the competitive dynamics of the conversational agents sector. This decision follows a previous analysis of the generative artificial intelligence sector and aims to gather insights from stakeholders.

Stakeholders are encouraged to submit their feedback by March 6, 2026, through a designated email address. The contributions will remain confidential, although authors may be cited in the final opinion if they consent.

The consultation will focus on various aspects of conversational agents, including their development, integration into existing services, and the role of advertising. Additionally, the Autorité will explore the competition issues related to the use of these agents in the e-commerce sector, while excluding the relationship between conversational agents and search engines from the scope of the consultation.



French Competition Authority Seeks Input on Conversational Agents

The French competition authority is launching a public consultation to gather feedback on the competitive functioning of the conversational agents sector, inviting stakeholders to submit their responses by March 6, 2026.