Europe’s global first: Landmark AI legislation takes effect next month

Europe’s groundbreaking artificial intelligence regulations are set to take effect next month, following the endorsement by EU countries on Tuesday of a political agreement reached in December.

An AI microchip – artistic interpretation. Image credit: Alius Noreika / Microsoft Copilot

This development positions the EU as a potential global standard-bearer for AI governance, affecting technology used in both business and everyday life. The EU’s AI Act offers a more robust framework compared to the United States’ voluntary compliance approach and China’s focus on social stability and state control.

The EU vote follows the approval by European lawmakers of the AI legislation, initially proposed by the European Commission in 2021 and subsequently amended. Concerns about AI’s role in spreading misinformation, fake news, and infringing on copyrighted material have escalated worldwide, particularly with the rise of generative AI systems like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini.

Belgian digitisation minister Mathieu Michel highlighted the significance of the AI Act, calling it a landmark law that addresses a global technological challenge while creating opportunities for societies and economies. “With the AI Act, Europe emphasizes the importance of trust, transparency and accountability when dealing with new technologies while at the same time ensuring this fast-changing technology can flourish and boost European innovation,” Michel stated.

The AI Act mandates strict transparency requirements for high-risk AI systems, while imposing lighter obligations on general-purpose AI models. It restricts the use of real-time biometric surveillance in public spaces to specific cases, such as certain crimes, prevention of terrorist attacks, and searches for suspects of serious offenses.

Experts note that the Act’s impact will extend beyond the 27-member EU, compelling companies outside the bloc that use EU customer data in their AI platforms to comply. Other countries and regions might adopt the AI Act as a model, similar to the influence of the EU’s GDPR privacy rules.

The legislation will be fully applicable in 2026, but some provisions will take effect sooner. Bans on AI applications in social scoring, predictive policing, and indiscriminate scraping of facial images from the internet or CCTV footage will start six months after the law comes into force. Requirements for general-purpose AI models will be enforced after 12 months, while rules for AI systems integrated into regulated products will apply after 36 months.

Violations can result in fines ranging from 7.5 million euros ($8.2 million) or 1.5% of turnover, to 35 million euros or 7% of global turnover, depending on the severity of the infraction.

Written by Alius Noreika