Follow the money. Follow the data.
AI doesn't exist in isolation. Every major AI system is owned by a tech giant with vast data ecosystems. Your search history trains Google's AI. Your LinkedIn profile trains Microsoft's AI. Your Instagram photos train Meta's AI.
Click each company to see how ownership, data, and products interconnect.
1. Data flows into AI. Every product you use—search, email, social media, shopping—generates data. That data trains AI models. The companies with the most products collect the most data and build the most powerful AI.
2. AI flows back into products. Once trained, AI gets integrated everywhere: your email autocomplete, your photo organization, your feed ranking, your search results. You can't opt out—it's baked into the infrastructure.
3. Concentration creates power. Four companies (Microsoft, Google, Meta, Amazon) control the majority of: consumer AI models, cloud computing infrastructure, advertising platforms, social networks, and operating systems. OpenAI and Anthropic appear independent but rely on Microsoft/Google/Amazon for funding and cloud infrastructure.
4. Your data is the moat. It's not just that these companies have more money—they have more data. A startup can't compete with Google's 25 years of search queries or Meta's 3 billion user profiles. Data access is the barrier to entry.
5. Regulation trails reality. By the time regulators understand these connections, the integrations are complete. Antitrust law struggles to address ecosystems where "free" products subsidize AI development, and AI improvements justify data collection.
AI integration makes it harder to leave ecosystems. Switching from Gmail means losing Smart Compose. Leaving Microsoft means losing Copilot. The more AI, the stickier the platform.
Everything you do in one product can inform AI in another. Your YouTube watch history might influence your Search results. Your LinkedIn connections might train Microsoft's AI.
"Free" products aren't free—they're data collection for AI training. Gmail is free because it trains AI that powers Google Workspace (paid). Facebook is free because it trains ad targeting AI (profitable).
When AI, cloud infrastructure, advertising, and social platforms are owned by the same companies, entire sectors depend on a handful of corporations. What happens when one fails or is compromised?
Who owns Microsoft, Google, Meta, Amazon?
Top shareholders are institutional investors:
These are index funds managing retirement accounts, pensions, and ETFs. If you have a 401(k) or IRA, you likely own tiny fractions of these AI companies through index funds.
Why this matters:
The same institutional investors own stakes across all major tech companies, reducing competitive pressure. When Vanguard owns Microsoft and Google, does it benefit from fierce competition or stable oligopoly?
How Microsoft's investment reshaped OpenAI
How data access creates monopoly power
Deep dives on tech concentration and antitrust
Questions to Ask
• Which company has access to my data across multiple products?
• How does data from one product train AI in another?
• Can I use this AI product without being locked into an ecosystem?
• Who really owns this "independent" AI company?
• What happens if I want to leave this platform?