EU Artificial Intelligence Act

Image credit: DeepMind on Unsplash

What will be the international repercussions of the AIA and to what extent will it unilaterally impact international rule-making?

Description
The European Union’s AI Act (AIA) aspires to establish the first comprehensive regulatory scheme for artificial intelligence, but its impact will not stop at the EU’s borders. In fact, some EU policymakers believe it is a critical goal of the AIA to set a worldwide standard. This framing implies that not only is there value in regulating AI systems, but that being among the first major governments to do so will have broad global impact to the benefit of the EU—often referred to as the “Brussels Effect.”

However, while the AIA will contribute to the EU’s already significant global influence over some online platforms, it may otherwise only moderately shape international regulation. Considering this, the EU should focus on a more collaborative approach in order to bring other governments along with its perspective on AI governance. Of course, the extraterritorial impact of the EU AI Act will be complex, as many businesses will respond based on their own unique circumstances and incentives, and unintended consequences are certain.

Relevance
The proposed EU Artificial Intelligence Act and its intersections with the EU General Data Protection Regulation could present compliance issues for data compliance officers across the continent. IAPP Senior Westin Research Fellow Jetty Tielemans:“It’s quite frightening to hear all the things that compliance officers will need to comply with in Europe, it’s not exactly clear to me how all this will work together.”