The European Union passed the first AI law in the world, know who will be affected
Published On:
The EU's AI Act came into effect on August 1, establishing the world's first comprehensive regulation of artificial intelligence.
This important law aims to regulate the development, use and application of AI technologies within the European Union, affecting major technology companies such as Facebook, Apple, Microsoft and Google.
Legislative background
Approved in May 2024 by the EU's executive body, which includes member states, legislators and the European Commission, the AI Act reflects the EU's dedication to leveraging AI for societal benefits while minimizing risks.
Originally proposed in 2020, the law addresses adverse effects of AI and promotes responsible use.
Regulatory framework
The AI Act provides a unified regulatory framework across EU member states using a risk-based approach to manage AI technologies. This approach varies the level of regulation according to the risk posed by different AI applications.
High risk AI applications
The Act mandates stricter requirements for 'high risk' AI applications. These include risk assessment, mitigation measures, use of high quality training data to reduce bias, regular logging of activities and obligation to share detailed documentation with authorities.
Examples of high-risk applications include self-driving cars, medical devices, loan approval systems, educational scoring, and remote biometric identification systems.
Prohibited AI applications
The AI Act prohibits applications that are deemed 'unacceptable' due to their high risk, such as certain surveillance and social scoring systems.
Impact on major tech companies
The primary targets of the AI Act are large US tech companies, which are the leaders in AI developers. Companies like Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Apple and Meta, which have invested heavily in AI, will have a significant impact.
Cloud platforms such as Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud, which are essential for AI development due to their computational power, will also be significantly affected by these new regulations.
Conclusion
The EU's AI Act is a historic step towards ethical and responsible AI use. The purpose of these regulations is to create a safer and more reliable AI ecosystem, to ensure that technological advances benefit society and minimize potential harm.
