By Jasper Ward and Krystal Hu

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Federal Trade Commission said on Thursday it had ordered OpenAI, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon and Anthropic to provide information on recent investments and partnerships involving generative AI companies and cloud service providers.

Generative AI, which like ChatGPT uses data to create new content, has drawn attention from lawmakers and regulators globally, concerned it could be used to threaten national security, amplify influence operations or facilitate fraud.

Deals among the small number of powerful players and Big Tech have raised antitrust concerns.

The FTC orders will allow the agency to scrutinize the inner workings of deals between Microsoft, Google and Amazon and AI providers to help the antitrust and consumer protection agency understand how these deals have affected competition.

It also signals to the industry that “we’re watching, we’re learning and we will continue to observe” and that if the time comes for future action, the agency will be fully prepared, said former FTC chair William Kovacic, who teaches at George Washington University law school.

The extensive document request seeks details on how the partnerships with Big Tech influence strategy and "decisions around the pricing of products and services; decisions around the granting of access to products and services; and decisions around personnel."

The agency, which also wants information on exclusivity agreements, said the companies have 45 days to respond to the orders.

In a statement, Microsoft said it would provide the FTC information to complete its review and that collaboration by American companies put the U.S. ahead in AI.

"Partnerships between independent companies like Microsoft and OpenAI, as well as among many others, are promoting competition and accelerating innovation," said Rima Alaily, Microsoft's corporate vice president for its competition and market regulation group.

Google said it hoped the inquiry would "shine a bright light on companies" that are less open than it is and that have a "long history of locking-in customers."

Spokespeople for Anthropic and Amazon declined to comment. OpenAI did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Last June, FTC staff published a blog post laying out areas of potential anticompetitiveness, adding they would use the "full range of tools to identify and address unfair methods of competition." It said competition was especially important in the three areas of data, talent and computational resources.