Sarah Cardell

The pace of recent AI advancements has taken many regulators by surprise. The United Kingdom’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), currently led by Sarah Cardell, was not one of them.

In 2019, the CMA set up a unit staffed by data scientists and technologists to scan the technological horizon. So in 2023, they had the internal capacity to address shifts in the AI market. As part of their mandate to promote competitive markets and tackle unfair behavior, they launched an initial review of foundation models in May 2023. An updated version of that report has identified an interconnected web of over 90 partnerships involving big tech firms and risks to fair, open, and effective competition. It also published six principles that cover issues from access to inputs to accountability for AI outputs. Despite the potential antagonism, AI labs have reportedly responded positively to their work.

The CMA has also been using its merger control powers to investigate various deals, including Microsoft’s partnership with OpenAI, and Amazon’s partnership with Anthropic. Thanks to new legislation expected to take effect in 2025, its powers are set to expand to allow them to set code of conduct requirements for AI and other firms, with penalties for non-compliance.

Cardell views her work as an opportunity “to get in early” and “maximize the potential for positive options” in the AI market by promoting competition and protecting consumers. Despite the privacy, copyright, and safety concerns already posed by the technology, she believes competitive markets will eventually allow consumers better choices and enhanced protections.

While much of the CMA’s work is ongoing—”we need to keep moving just to stand still,” Cardell tells TIME—their eyes are fixed firmly on the future: “We have to be ready for the possibility that this could be truly transformational very quickly.”