European Parliament passes law governing artificial intelligence

Seen as a bold step forward in shaping the future of AI, the law, when enacted, will set the framework for the ethical and responsible development and use of AI.

The European Union (EU) reached a provisional political consensus in early December last year, after which the bill was officially passed in the Parliament session held on March 13, with 523 votes in favor, 46 votes against and 49 abstentions.

“Europe is now the place to set global standards on AI,” wrote European Commissioner for the Internal Market Thierry Breton on social media platform X (formerly Twitter).

European Parliament President Roberta Metsola described the law as a pioneering step, saying it would enable innovation while protecting fundamental rights. “AI is already an essential part of our daily lives. Now it will also be part of the law,” she wrote in a social media post.

Meanwhile, Dragos Tudorache - a lawmaker who oversaw the European Union's negotiations on the deal - praised the deal, but noted that the biggest obstacle remains its implementation.

Coming out in 2021, the draft EU Artificial Intelligence Act (EU AI Act) classifies AI by risk level, from “unacceptable” which would see the technology banned, to high, medium and low risk.

The world’s first AI law is set to reshape how businesses and organizations in Europe use the technology for everything from healthcare decisions to policing. The law imposes a blanket ban on some “unacceptable” uses of AI technology, while also setting strict rules for other applications deemed “high risk.”

The law also bans the use of AI to predict people's emotions in schools and workplaces, as well as certain types of automated profiling intended to predict a person's likelihood of committing a crime in the future.

Meanwhile, the law sets out a separate category of “high-risk” uses of AI, particularly in education, recruitment, and access to government services. For these cases, the law sets out a separate set of transparency and other obligations.

The law also imposes new disclosure requirements on companies like OpenAI, which develop powerful, complex, and widely used AI models.

The law is expected to come into force at the end of the legislative term next May, after passing final checks and receiving approval from the European Council.

Some EU countries have previously favored self-regulation over government-led restrictions amid concerns that draconian regulations could create barriers to Europe’s progress in competing with Chinese and American companies in the tech sector. Opponents include Germany and France, home to some of Europe’s most promising AI startups.

The EU is struggling to keep up with the impact of technological developments on consumers and the market dominance of key companies.

Last week, the Union introduced landmark competition legislation aimed at reining in US tech giants. Under the Digital Markets Act, the EU could crack down on anti-competitive practices by big tech companies and force them to expand services in areas where their dominance has stifled smaller rivals and stifled consumer choice.

Six companies including US giants Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft and China's Bytedance have been included in the list of “gatekeepers”.

Concerns about the potential misuse of AI are growing, even as giants like Microsoft, Amazon, Google and chipmaker Nvidia are pushing to invest in AI.

Governments are concerned about the potential use of AI-generated fake videos or photos, known as deepfakes, during a series of key global elections this year.

Some AI advocates have already started to regulate their operations to avoid misinformation. On March 12, Google announced it would limit the types of election-related questions that can be asked of its Gemini chatbot, saying it had already implemented the changes in the United States and India.

“The AI ​​Act has accelerated the development of AI in a direction where humans control the technology and where technology will help us leverage new discoveries for economic growth, social progress and unlocking human potential,” lawmaker Tudorache said on social media on March 12.

“The AI ​​Act is not the end of the journey, but the beginning of a new governance model built around this technology. Now we need to focus our political energy to turn it from law on the books into reality,” Mr. Tudorache added.

Legal experts describe the legislation as a milestone for international AI regulation, noting that it could pave the way for other countries to follow suit.

“Once again, the EU has been a pioneer, developing a very comprehensive set of regulations,” said Steven Farmer, partner and AI expert at international law firm Pillsbury.

Mark Ferguson, a public policy expert at UK multinational law firm Pinsent Masons, added that passing the law is just the beginning, and businesses will need to work closely with lawmakers to understand how to implement it as this rapidly evolving technology continues to transform.