The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has requested more information from Amazon regarding its recent deal with artificial intelligence startup Adept, according to sources cited by Reuters.

This inquiry is part of the regulator's growing scrutiny of partnerships between major tech companies and prominent AI startups.

Last month, Amazon announced that Adept's chief executive officer, David Luan, and other key personnel would be joining the e-commerce giant, which would also license some of Adept's technology. The move is seen as part of Amazon's efforts to catch up with rivals Google and Microsoft in developing large language models capable of responding to complex queries almost instantaneously.

The informal inquiry centres on the details of this arrangement, reflecting the FTC's concern about how AI deals are structured. It follows a broader review of partnerships between Big Tech firms and AI startups, including the regulator's ongoing investigation into Microsoft's similar move to hire leadership and employees from Inflection AI.

Founded in 2022, Adept raised over $400 million from venture capital investors but struggled to launch successful commercial products despite releasing some open-source models. The terms of Amazon's deal with Adept, including any potential compensation for investors or licensing fees, remain unclear.

Amazon has been ramping up its AI efforts, establishing a new Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) team focused on developing large language models. Luan is now leading the "AGI Autonomy" team, comprising many former Adept employees, and reports to Rohit Prasad, head of the AGI team.

This development comes amid increased regulatory scrutiny of AI partnerships. Earlier this year, the FTC launched a study demanding information on relationships between AI companies and Big Tech firms, including Microsoft's ties with OpenAI and Anthropic's partnerships with Google and Amazon.

US antitrust enforcers have expressed concern about large tech companies leveraging their existing advantages in AI to potentially shut out smaller competitors. The FTC and Justice Department have indicated their intention to investigate potential probes into Microsoft, OpenAI, and chipmaker Nvidia.

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