New York, February 9, 2026, 16:18 (EST) — After-hours
- Meta climbed roughly 2.4% after EU regulators targeted WhatsApp’s restrictions on competing AI assistants.
- U.S. tech stocks bounced back, pushing Mega-cap names higher by the end of the session
- Attention shifts to Wednesday’s U.S. payrolls data, with Friday’s CPI release also on deck.
Meta Platforms, Inc. climbed 2.4% to $677.23 in after-hours trade Monday, with shares swinging between $657.00 and $683.25 earlier in the session. The stock reacted to news that EU antitrust officials have ramped up their investigation into WhatsApp’s AI assistant restrictions, which prevent competing bots from gaining access. 1
Brussels is considering interim measures—a stopgap order that could force changes before the case wraps up. That’s a headache for Meta, especially around its use of WhatsApp to push out its Meta AI assistant, and it raises the question of just how fast regulators might move. 2
The WhatsApp Business API connects company systems directly into WhatsApp, allowing automation at large scale. Should regulators determine it’s now a bottleneck for AI assistants, Meta’s ability to dictate terms narrows—and so do prospects for pushing out AI features through its apps.
EU antitrust chief Teresa Ribera said the Commission aims to prevent dominant firms from stacking the deck in their favor, and it’s weighing speedy measures to keep competitors in the game during the probe. 3
Meta countered, insisting “there are many AI options,” and contended that regulators are placing too much weight on WhatsApp’s Business API as a chatbot distribution route. 4
The Commission’s latest step comes after a closer look at a WhatsApp rule Meta rolled out back in mid-January, one that restricted the service to just its own assistant, Meta AI. Moves like this haven’t been limited to Europe; other regions have seen similar pushback, raising questions about Meta’s ability to carve out exclusive zones inside its messaging platforms. 5
The stock climbed as tech shares rebounded across Wall Street, reversing some of the damage from last week’s AI-fueled selloff. “You’ve a sharply oversold market where a little bit of good news can go a long way,” said Keith Lerner, chief investment officer at Truist Advisory Services. He noted just how abruptly sentiment can reverse in software and megacap tech. 6
Macro risk isn’t leaving the stage. Wednesday, Feb. 11 brings the U.S. January jobs report at 8:30 a.m. ET, with January CPI set for Friday, Feb. 13 at the same time. Both could jolt rate expectations—and with them, high-multiple tech names. 7
Meta hasn’t slowed its product push. Instagram’s working on an in-house prototype for a disappearing-photo app known as “Instants”—think Snapchat, but just for internal teams for now. According to a Meta spokesperson, there’s no external testing yet. 8
Regulators might not just stick to warnings. EU competition law allows fines as high as 10% of a company’s total turnover from the previous business year, and required remedies can force changes to product operations. Just the mention of interim measures can have investors accounting for possible disruption sooner. 9
Looking ahead to Tuesday, the immediate question is whether Brussels hints at a swift interim move. Then it comes down to the U.S. jobs numbers on Feb. 11 and inflation data on Feb. 13—both could be crucial for sustaining the tech bounce.
