Brussels, BELGIUM – Late last night, the European Parliament and EU Member States reached a provisional political agreement on the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Act, yet the outcome seems to indicate that future-proof AI legislation was sacrificed for a quick deal.
The Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA Europe) acknowledges the co-legislators’ hard work, but regrets the absence of in-depth discussions on many critical parts.
Last night’s agreement lacks important details. Without strong improvements at technical level in the coming weeks, the AI Act will be a missed opportunity for Europe. The deal does make a number of welcome improvements to the initial text, such as the possibility for developers to demonstrate that a system does not pose a high risk.
Unfortunately, however, the final text largely departs from the sensible risk-based approach proposed by the Commission, which prioritised innovation over overly prescriptive regulation. The agreed AI Act imposes stringent obligations on developers of cutting-edge technologies that underpin many downstream systems, and is therefore likely to slow-down innovation in Europe.
Furthermore, certain low-risk AI systems will now be subjected to strict requirements without further justification, while others will be banned altogether. This could lead to an exodus of European AI companies and talent seeking growth elsewhere.
CCIA Europe is committed to supporting the EU institutions in delivering an AI Act that truly promotes the uptake and development of AI, as it was originally intended to do.
The following can be attributed to Senior Vice President and Head of CCIA Europe, Daniel Friedlaender:
“Last night’s political deal marks the beginning of important and necessary technical work on crucial details of the AI Act, which are still missing. Regrettably speed seems to have prevailed over quality, with potentially disastrous consequences for the European economy. The negative impact could be felt far beyond the AI sector alone.”
The following can be attributed to CCIA Europe’s Policy Manager, Boniface de Champris:
“The final AI Act lacks the vision and ambition that European tech startups and businesses are displaying right now. It might even end up chasing away the European champions that the EU so desperately wants to empower.”
