A historical day for the AI Act - The AI Act reaches an important milestone politically
After a whirlwind negotiation in December, European member states finally approved the AI Act at the Coreper level, leaving it (almost) ready for its final destination.
AI Act’s definition of an AI system
‘AI system‘ is a machine-based system designed to operate with varying levels of autonomy and that may exhibit adaptiveness after deployment and that, for explicit or implicit objectives, infers, from the input it receives, how to generate outputs such as predictions, content, recommendations, or decisions that can influence physical or virtual environments.
A stirring pot
On Friday 2nd, European member states agreed upon the AI Act. The AI Act has from the start stirred concerns from states as Germany, France, Austria, and Italy, nonetheless, all member states chose to support the compromise text making it impossible for a blocking minority to reach in Council.
However, though the above-listed countries chose to support the compromise text, the concerns regarding AI and copyright, and data protection remains.
In DI we are happy to see that the text is finalized and that the technical meetings have led to fair requirements that can hopefully strengthen European competitiveness and further innovation in AI technology.
New AI office
The Commission has announced that they will establish a European Artificial Intelligence Office within the Commission as part of the administrative structure of the Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content, and Technology. The purpose of the office will be to establish a structure, that should oversee the advancements in AI models, and the interaction with the scientific community and play a key role in investigations, testing, enforcement, and have a global vocation.
What will happen next?
In the following weeks, the text will be processed for a vote at the IMCO-LIBE Committee in the European Parliament. The vote will be on 13 February and if there is no major opposition at the Committee level, the text will be passed on to the Plenary meeting in potentially April, and then it will be finalized by lawyers for its final review.
For more updates on the AI Act, please visit our AI site HERE.
Interested in the AI Act – Save the date for our next AI Act event on 4 March!
On 4 March, DI will open our doors for members to hear more about the upcoming AI Act. We invite lead negotiators, politicians, and businesses to debate how the business sector will be impacted by regulation and how companies can handle the development and implementation of AI responsibly and innovatively. In addition, we will present specific tools to guide participants through the AI act.
More information will follow shortly on DI Digital events. Stay tuned.
