Despite some opposition, the Act is expected to be adopted and enter into force later this year, with the first provisions applying six months after that. The Act will be rolled out in phases, with legal requirements for in-scope developers increasing between 2024 and 2027. However, the Pirate Party has expressed concerns about the Act, stating it opens the door to permanent facial surveillance in real time and leads Europe into a dystopian future of a high-tech surveillance state.
Key takeaways:
- The European Parliament’s civil liberties (LIBE) and internal market (IMCO) committees have endorsed draft legislation for a risk-based framework for regulating applications of artificial intelligence (AI).
- The proposed EU AI Act sets rules for AI developers based on the power of their models and/or the purpose for which they intend to apply AI, and includes a list of prohibited uses of AI.
- The Act also provides for the establishment of regulatory sandboxes at the national level to enable developers to develop, train and test risky apps in a supervised environment.
- Despite the endorsement, some opposition persists, with the Pirate Party declining to support what its MEPs are dubbing a “flawed” law, warning that it opens the door to permanent facial surveillance in real time.