DOJ probes a16z over AI board interlocks antitrust concerns

The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz regarding potential antitrust violations stemming from investment partners serving on boards of competing artificial intelligence companies. According to sources familiar with the matter, the probe focuses on whether these overlapping directorships improperly reduce competition within the concentrated AI sector. The investigation examines if shared board members facilitate information exchange or coordinate strategy among rival startups backed by the same investor. This scrutiny reflects growing regulatory concern that vertical integration and cross-ownership in emerging tech markets may stifle innovation through structural conflicts of interest. Andreessen Horowitz has not publicly commented on the inquiry. The outcome could establish new precedents for how antitrust law applies to venture capital governance in nascent industries where few dominant investors back multiple competing entities simultaneously.