In February 2020, the European Commission issued the White Paper on Artificial Intelligence. This document will be the basis for a number of new EU rules and legislations on the technology sector, in particular what the European Union considers high risk Artificial Intelligence applications. Most impacted sectors will be healthcare, financial institutions, transport and energy. The new rules and regulations will have global effects, not only for those companies that serve European consumers. As with the GDPR, the Artificial Intelligence regulation will shape future policy in other jurisdictions across the world.
In more concrete terms, the new EU rules are expected to introduce specific obligations for high risk Artificial Intelligence applications such as robustness and accuracy, training data and record-keeping and human oversight. Another important component is the fine line on what is high risk and low risk for certain applications. All businesses are currently invited to share their views on the White Paper by May 19, 2020. By June 2020, the European Commission will issue an assessment of the requirement identified above. A concrete legislative proposal might follow in the last quarter of 2020.
In conclusion, the process to regulate Artificial Intelligence in Europe has already started. Technology companies, but also companies that rely on Artificial Intelligence enabled products will be heavily affected. Therefore, all businesses most likely to be affected, should start now thinking of engaging with the EU institutions, starting with the ongoing consultation process.