EU AI Act: Too vague and too bureaucratic?

A long-awaited milestone in political AI regulation was finally reached last Friday: in negotiations that have been ongoing since 2021, the EU Commission, Council, and Parliament have now agreed on a joint version of the AI Act. Although technical details still need to be worked out, this marks the achievement of a major EU goal: the first supranational regulation of AI applications is intended not only to be a binding set of rules for Europe, but also to send an international signal.

But what concrete impact will this legislation have on the economy, which in some cases has already integrated AI as an integral part of its work? Fundamentally, the AI Act is also intended to serve to strengthen Europe as a business location, particularly in the area of AI companies based here. However, some fear the opposite effect: Bitkom CEO Rohleder, for example, warns that overregulation could weaken Europe as a business location. The regulation of generative AI, which is at the heart of the AI Act, “overshoots the mark.” The German Start-up Association and the AI Association have also expressed similar concerns: they claim that the law is too vague and bureaucratic, and that young companies with limited resources in particular are at a disadvantage in international competition. Overall, however, the industry welcomes the EU's initiative to establish binding and uniform regulations for the use and development of AI. This will set a global standard and at the same time create legal certainty for companies.

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