For Europe, the outcome of next week’s US elections will have profound consequences. NATO funding is at stake, as is a possible peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. Projections suggest that a trade war with Donald Trump could affect the GDP of the bloc’s largest economy, Germany, in 1.5 percent. By comparison, the future of Big Tech is a sideshow, but a tense one. President Joe Biden’s administration ushered in a new era of confrontation with people like GoalMicrosoft and NVIDIAall of whom faced legal action during his tenure. A proposal to spin off Google is still pending.
Unlike many other places in the world where American technology reigns, when the European Union sets new rules, these companies pay attention. In the Biden era, the EU found an ally in its ambitions to dominate Big Tech, says Max von Thun, director of European and transatlantic partnerships at the Open Markets Institute. “During the Trump administration or even during (former President Barack) Obama’s administration, there was a feeling that if the EU went too far, there would be a violent reaction from the United States,” von Thun explains, meaning that Regulators felt that ordering the companies to split up their business was off the table. “Whereas under Biden, because the United States is looking for those kinds of solutions, the EU thinks, well, we can do it too.”
Many in Brussels would like to see that alignment continue. Most Europeans respect American search engines, browse American social media, and shop on American e-commerce sites. There have long been concerns that the dominance of the big five (Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta and Microsoft) is stifling European competition and failing consumers. This is not just a problem for EU regulators. It also worries the minds of ordinary Americans, according to Democratic pollster Lake Research Partners. TO survey of 600 likely voters in seven crucial battleground states and Ohio found that 67 percent believe corporate power (and lack of government resistance) is one of the factors driving the country. biggest problems. With the new Digital Markets Law, Europe has made clear its intention to limit the reach of technology giants. However, enforcing those new rules would be much easier with American buy-in.
Big Tech’s politics in this election are confusing. The titans of Silicon Valley are divided between Democrats and Republicans. Throughout their campaigns, both Trump and Kamala Harris have been noncommittal about how they would regulate the world’s largest companies. Trump has hinted, vaguely, that “something” should be done about Google, to make the company “fairer.” Meanwhile, Harris has so far not said whether she agrees with Democratic mega-donor and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman’s characterization of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) antitrust policy as a “war on corporate America.” .
It is unclear to what extent Harris would continue Biden’s relatively confrontational approach. Biden departed from the policies of his own running mate, Obama, who responded to European scrutiny of Google and Facebook by accusing the bloc of protectionismsaying that European companies “cannot compete”. Harris’s own comments on antitrust have been sparse, although he has long expressed interest in data protection. “I believe Facebook has experienced massive growth and has prioritized its growth over the best interest of its consumers, especially on the issue of privacy,” he said in an interview on cnn in 2019. When asked if the company should be dissolved, he responded: “Yes, I think we should look at it seriously.”
But big tech hawks in Brussels have been closely monitoring Harris’ ties to Silicon Valley. His brother-in-law, Tony West, who has acted as a close advisor, is Uber’s chief legal officer. The company announced in August that he would take unpaid leave to focus on the campaign. Google lawyer Karen Dunn has also been linked to Harris, and prepared her for the ABC debate last month.