Future-Proofing Fair Competition: Chuck Webb on AI, ESG, and Global Antitrust Strategy at FedEx
By Daniel Abramoff
At The Counsel House podcast, we sit down with the sharpest legal minds shaping the future of the profession. In our June 2025 episode, co-host Daniel Abramoff interviewed Chuck Webb, Lead Antitrust Counsel at FedEx. With over 25 years of experience across private practice, government enforcement, academia, and in-house roles at Walmart and FedEx, Chuck brings an exceptional breadth of knowledge to the ever-evolving antitrust landscape.
In this conversation, Chuck unpacks the nuanced challenges presented by AI-driven pricing tools, ESG collaboration, and international regulatory divergence, while offering a grounded yet forward-looking perspective on building global compliance frameworks.
ESG Meets Antitrust: Diverging Regulatory Paths
One of the most pressing topics in global antitrust today is how regulators view ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) collaborations between competitors. While the European Commission has taken a proactive, structured approach with guidelines that offer a safe harbor for sustainability agreements, U.S. regulators remain cautious.
“You can’t use ESG to greenwash a cartel,” Chuck affirms, referencing the European Commission’s clear line in the sand. Yet, he notes, the EU has provided a framework for permissible ESG cooperation, giving companies room to act in good faith. By contrast, in the U.S., the DOJ and FTC have emphasized there is no ESG exception to antitrust laws, without offering a roadmap for compliant collaboration.
“What we’re seeing is a fundamental divergence that isn’t based on economics or theory,” Chuck explains. “It’s rooted in the politics of climate change.” The challenge for global organizations like FedEx, which operates in over 220 jurisdictions, is to harmonize global sustainability objectives with vastly different legal frameworks.
AI and the New Frontier of Price Fixing
The rise of AI in dynamic pricing has sparked fresh scrutiny from regulators. Chuck walks through recent DOJ and FTC filings in civil suits involving shared algorithmic pricing tools among competitors—one involving landlords and another, hotel chains.
The key takeaway? “Price fixing is still price fixing,” even when facilitated by a shared software provider. Agencies argue that competitors don’t need direct communication to violate the Sherman Act if they’re using the same algorithms to set or influence base prices.
Chuck cautions that while these enforcement actions rest on long-standing antitrust principles, AI introduces new layers of complexity. He imagines a future scenario: what happens when AI systems autonomously scrape and adjust pricing data across multiple competitors without human intervention? “Do you still need a meeting of the minds? Can you have collusion without communication?” he asks. These are questions the courts and agencies will increasingly face.
Compliance Across 220 Jurisdictions
As a leader in global logistics, FedEx faces compliance challenges on an international scale. Chuck emphasizes that the company’s core antitrust principles remain firm: no price-fixing, no market allocation, and strict adherence to competition law.
FedEx’s published policy reflects this ethos: “Actions that violate competition laws are prohibited and simply not the way FedEx does business.” Still, Chuck acknowledges the complexity of vertical pricing relationships, which vary widely between jurisdictions. In those cases, local nuance is key, but decisions must be “knowingly made” and never assumed.
FedEx’s global compliance framework is rooted in a company-wide culture of ethics. Chuck is proud that FedEx was recently recognized by Ethisphere as one of the world’s most ethical companies—the only honoree in its industry.
The Decline of Leniency and the Rise of Data Surveillance
With leniency applications decreasing globally, antitrust enforcement agencies are turning to data analytics to detect cartel behavior. Chuck notes that agencies are expanding their teams with analytics specialists and launching more “ex officio” investigations without insider tips.
But more data doesn’t always mean more clarity. As Chuck explains, regulators must now distinguish between coordinated price manipulation and independent, lawful competitive behavior in an ocean of digital pricing signals. “Finding the needle in the haystack is getting harder,” he says. Companies, too, must tread carefully when deploying AI for pricing decisions, balancing competitive intelligence with strict legal guardrails.
The Role of Academia—and the Broader Community
As a former antitrust professor, Chuck is passionate about education and civic engagement in the field. He cites the current moment as the most dynamic in his career. With technologies like AI reshaping markets, he believes academia, agencies, law firms, and industry must all contribute to shaping modern antitrust policy.
He closes with a personal reflection: “Justice Thurgood Marshall once said antitrust laws are the Magna Carta of free enterprise. That spirit is why I became an antitrust lawyer—and it’s what still gets me out of bed in the morning.”
We are deeply grateful to Chuck Webb for sharing his insights and passion with The Counsel House. His thoughtful take on global enforcement, AI ethics, and the legal foundations of competition offers a roadmap for in-house counsel and regulators alike.
If you’re a general counsel, legal executive, or regulatory expert with a story to tell, we’d love to feature you on the podcast. Reach out to us at daniel@counselhouse.org to join the conversation.
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