Negotiators from the European Parliament and Council achieved a significant breakthrough on Friday, December 8th, by reaching a provisional agreement on the regulation of artificial intelligence (AI).
This landmark accord addresses various facets of AI deployment, including governmental use in biometric surveillance, regulations concerning AI systems such as ChatGPT, and transparency protocols prior to market entry.
It encompasses technical documentation, compliance with European Union copyright regulations, and the sharing of training content summaries.
The European Union is poised to become the first supranational authority to institute comprehensive AI regulations that promote its beneficial utilization while safeguarding against potential risks.
The agreement was the culmination of an exhaustive 24-hour debate on December 8th, followed by 15 hours of intense negotiations.
Under the agreement’s provisions, AI models with significant impacts and systemic risks are obligated to assess and mitigate those risks, undergo adversarial testing for system resilience, report incidents to the European Commission, ensure cybersecurity measures, and disclose information on energy efficiency.
The European Parliament emphasized the importance of proper implementation, signaling its intention to closely monitor and support innovative businesses with the establishment of sandboxes and effective regulations, particularly for the most potent AI models.
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Following the agreement, Thierry Breton, European Commissioner for Internal Market, celebrated the historic moment, declaring on X (formerly Twitter), “Historic! The #AIAct is much more than a rulebook — it’s a launchpad for EU startups and researchers to lead the global AI race. The best is yet to come!”
According to the agreed-upon terms, general-purpose AI systems carrying risks must adhere to specific codes of conduct.
Furthermore, governments are restricted in their use of real-time biometric surveillance, which is only permitted in specific instances, such as certain types of crimes or severe public security threats.
The agreement explicitly bans cognitive behavioral manipulation, the scraping of facial images from the internet or CCTV footage, social scoring, and biometric systems inferring personal details, including beliefs and orientations.
It also ensures consumers’ rights to file complaints and receive explanations in case of violations.
Penalties for infringements range from 7.5 million euros ($8.1 million) or 1.5% of a company’s turnover to 35 million euros ($37.7 million) or 7% of their global turnover, depending on the nature of the violation and the company’s size.
The European Parliament has indicated that the agreed-upon text will undergo formal adoption by both the parliament and council before becoming EU law.
The internal market and civil liberties committees of the parliament will conduct a vote on the agreement during an upcoming meeting.
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