Artificial Intelligence Act

Regulation 2024/1689
European Union regulation
Text with EEA relevance
TitleArtificial Intelligence Act[1]
Made byEuropean Parliament and Council
Journal referenceOJ L, 2024/1689, 12.7.2024
History
European Parliament vote13 March 2024
Council Vote21 May 2024
Entry into force1 August 2024
Preparative texts
Commission proposal2021/206
Other legislation
AmendsRegulations (EC) No 300/2008, (EU) No 167/2013, (EU) No 168/2013, (EU) 2018/858, (EU) 2018/1139 and (EU) 2019/2144 and Directives 2014/90/EU
Current legislation

The Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act)[1] is a European Union regulation concerning artificial intelligence (AI). It establishes a common regulatory and legal framework for AI within the European Union (EU).[2] It came into force on 1 August 2024,[3] with provisions that shall come into operation gradually over the following 6 to 36 months.[4]

It covers all types of AI across a broad range of sectors, with exceptions for AI systems used solely for military, national security, research and non-professional purposes.[5] As a piece of product regulation, it does not confer rights on individuals, but regulates the providers of AI systems and entities using AI in a professional context.[6]

The Act classifies non-exempt AI applications by their risk of causing harm. There are four levels – unacceptable, high, limited, minimal – plus an additional category for general-purpose AI.[7]

  • Applications with unacceptable risks are banned.
  • High-risk applications must comply with security, transparency and quality obligations, and undergo conformity assessments.
  • Limited-risk applications only have transparency obligations.
  • Minimal-risk applications are not regulated.

For general-purpose AI, transparency requirements are imposed, with reduced requirements for open source models, and additional evaluations for high-capability models.[8][9]

The Act also creates a European Artificial Intelligence Board to promote national cooperation and ensure compliance with the regulation.[10] Like the EU's General Data Protection Regulation, the Act can apply extraterritorially to providers from outside the EU if they have users within the EU.[6]

Proposed by the European Commission on 21 April 2021,[11] it passed the European Parliament on 13 March 2024,[12] and was unanimously approved by the EU Council on 21 May 2024.[13] The draft Act was revised to address the rise in popularity of generative artificial intelligence systems, such as ChatGPT, whose general-purpose capabilities did not fit the main framework.[14]

  1. ^ a b Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2024 laying down harmonised rules on artificial intelligence and amending Regulations (EC) No 300/2008, (EU) No 167/2013, (EU) No 168/2013, (EU) 2018/858, (EU) 2018/1139 and (EU) 2019/2144 and Directives 2014/90/EU, (EU) 2016/797 and (EU) 2020/1828 (Artificial Intelligence Act)
  2. ^ "Proposal for a Regulation laying down harmonised rules on artificial intelligence: Shaping Europe's digital future". digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu. 21 April 2021. Archived from the original on 4 January 2023. Retrieved 6 October 2024.
  3. ^ "AI Act enters into force" (Press release). Brussels: European Commission. 1 August 2024. Retrieved 5 August 2024.
  4. ^ "Timeline of Developments". artificialintelligenceact.eu. Future of Life Institute. Retrieved 13 July 2024.
  5. ^ "Artificial intelligence act: Council and Parliament strike a deal on the first rules for AI in the world". Council of the EU. 9 December 2023. Archived from the original on 10 January 2024. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  6. ^ a b Mueller, Benjamin (4 May 2021). "The Artificial Intelligence Act: A Quick Explainer". Center for Data Innovation. Archived from the original on 14 October 2022. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  7. ^ Lilkov, Dimitar (2021). "Regulating artificial intelligence in the EU: A risky game". European View. 20 (2): 166–174. doi:10.1177/17816858211059248.
  8. ^ Espinoza, Javier (9 December 2023). "EU agrees landmark rules on artificial intelligence". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 29 December 2023. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  9. ^ "EU AI Act: first regulation on artificial intelligence". European Parliament News. Archived from the original on 10 January 2024. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  10. ^ MacCarthy, Mark; Propp, Kenneth (4 May 2021). "Machines learn that Brussels writes the rules: The EU's new AI regulation". Brookings. Archived from the original on 27 October 2022. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
  11. ^ Proposal for a Regulation laying down harmonised rules on artificial intelligence
  12. ^ "World's first major act to regulate AI passed by European lawmakers". CNBC. 14 March 2024. Archived from the original on 13 March 2024. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  13. ^ Browne, Ryan (21 May 2024). "World's first major law for artificial intelligence gets final EU green light". CNBC. Archived from the original on 21 May 2024. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  14. ^ Coulter, Martin (7 December 2023). "What is the EU AI Act and when will regulation come into effect?". Reuters. Archived from the original on 10 December 2023. Retrieved 11 January 2024.