AI Regulation in Europe: From the AI Act to Future Regulatory Challenges
This is an incremental analysis targeting policymakers and stakeholders involved in AI governance, focusing on regulatory frameworks rather than technical innovation.
The paper analyzes AI regulation in the EU, particularly the AI Act, and argues for a hybrid strategy combining EU and UK approaches to address challenges like compliance and technological advancement, while noting the Act's shortcomings and calling for refinement and global collaboration.
This chapter provides a comprehensive discussion on AI regulation in the European Union, contrasting it with the more sectoral and self-regulatory approach in the UK. It argues for a hybrid regulatory strategy that combines elements from both philosophies, emphasizing the need for agility and safe harbors to ease compliance. The paper examines the AI Act as a pioneering legislative effort to address the multifaceted challenges posed by AI, asserting that, while the Act is a step in the right direction, it has shortcomings that could hinder the advancement of AI technologies. The paper also anticipates upcoming regulatory challenges, such as the management of toxic content, environmental concerns, and hybrid threats. It advocates for immediate action to create protocols for regulated access to high-performance, potentially open-source AI systems. Although the AI Act is a significant legislative milestone, it needs additional refinement and global collaboration for the effective governance of rapidly evolving AI technologies.