AI's biggest names stand accused of secretly agreeing to slow the very technology they have spent billions racing to build, a decision plaintiffs say cost paying customers real value. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Four leading AI companies conspired to throttle the pace of their own technology, according to a new antitrust lawsuit that accuses Anthropic, OpenAI, xAI and Google DeepMind of illegally coordinating a "slowdown" that shortchanged paying subscribers. The suit, filed in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, alleges the firms' chief executives colluded to restrain AI development under the guise of safety — an agreement plaintiffs…