Artificial Intelligence Act

The Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act) is a proposed regulation[1] by the European Commission which aims to introduce a common regulatory and legal framework for artificial intelligence. It applies to all sectors (except for military), and to all types of artificial intelligence.

Regulation COM/2021/206 final

European Union regulation
Text with EEA relevance
Title	"Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL LAYING DOWN HARMONISED RULES ON ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ACT) AND AMENDING CERTAIN UNION LEGISLATIVE ACTS"
Made by	European Commission
Journal reference	COM/2021/206 final
Proposed

The proposed regulation classifies artificial intelligence applications by their risk, and regulates them according to their risk. Low-risk applications are not regulated at all, self-assessment by the application provider is, however, encouraged. Medium and high-risk systems would require compulsory self-assessment before being put on the market, and some especially critical applications (for example in the medical sector) would require an independent assessment by third parties.

The proposal also would put a ban on certain types of applications, namely biometric mass surveillance, applications that subliminally manipulate persons, applications that exploit vulnerabilities of certain groups in a harmful way, and social credit scoring. For the first three, some limited exceptions in the context of law-enforcement exist, but social scoring would be banned completely.[2]

The act also proposes the introduction of a European Artificial Intelligence Board which will encourage national cooperation and ensure that the regulation is respected.[3]

Like the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the AI Act could become a global standard.[4] It is already having impact beyond Europe; in September 2021, Brazil’s Congress passed a bill that creates a legal framework for artificial intelligence.[5]