Space News from SpaceDaily.com
European companies urge EU to delay AI rules
Brussels, Belgium, July 3 (AFP) Jul 03, 2025
Dozens of Europe's biggest companies urged the EU to hit the pause button on its landmark AI rules on Thursday, warning that going too fast could harm the bloc's ability to lead in the global AI race.

The European Union's sweeping rules on artificial intelligence entered into force last year but the bloc has since pivoted to strengthening its industries in the face of fierce competition from China and the United States.

The new US administration under President Donald Trump has also taken aim at the rules. Vice President JD Vance in February lambasted the EU over "excessive" regulation.

Now, 46 top executives including from France's Airbus and Mistral, Dutch tech giant ASML and Germany's Lufthansa and Mercedes-Benz are calling on Brussels to reassess the rules.

They accused the EU's complex regulation of putting "Europe's AI ambitions at risk, as it jeopardises not only the development of European champions, but also the ability of all industries to deploy AI at the scale required by global competition".

The CEOs urged the European Commission to propose a two-year pause and for "further simplification of the new rules" for which a code of practice has yet to be released.

The pause, the CEOs said, should apply to obligations on general-purpose AI models -- like OpenAI's ChatGPT -- and high-risk AI systems that were due to take effect in August 2025 and August 2026 respectively.

The EU's law takes a risk-based approach to the technology.

The higher the risk to Europeans' rights or health, for example, the greater the systems' obligations to protect individuals from harm.

The EU has been working on the long-delayed code to provide guidance on how the rules should apply to general-purpose AI models, including Google's Gemini and Mistral's Le Chat.

There are expectations that the code will be watered down and the commission has said it will be published before the rules on GPAI models kick in next month.

AFP has a deal with Mistral allowing its chatbot to draw on the agency's articles to formulate responses.

raz/ec/cw

Airbus Group

ASML Holding

Lufthansa

Mercedes-Benz Group

GOOGLE


ADVERTISEMENT




Space News from SpaceDaily.com
Rare Trans Neptunian Object Reveals Unexpected Orbital Dance with Neptune
7 Must-Read Astronautics Books for Future Aerospace Engineers
York to Acquire Operations to Boost Ground Connectivity and Mission Delivery

24/7 Energy News Coverage
Framatome opens advanced additive manufacturing hub in France
Framatome to supply nuclear fuel for Barakah plant boosting UAE energy security
Solestial to Accelerate Space Solar Array Production with $12M SpaceWERX Contract

Military Space News, Nuclear Weapons, Missile Defense
Germany seeks US guarantee before sending Patriots to Ukraine
Space Force general to oversee U.S. 'Golden Dome' missile shield
China says raised 'solemn representations' with EU over Russia sanctions

24/7 News Coverage
Alien life clues may emerge from deep sea volcanic vents on Earth
ICJ to hand down watershed climate opinion
Japan's Hokkaido sizzles as heat stroke alerts issued


All rights reserved. Copyright Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.