EU Establishes 'AI Office' Within Commission To Enforce New Tech Regulations

EU Establishes 'AI Office' Within Commission To Enforce New Tech Regulations

The European Union announced the establishment of an "AI Office" comprising tech experts, lawyers, and economists to regulate artificial intelligence under a comprehensive new law. This move comes after the EU approved the world's first comprehensive regulations governing AI, particularly potent systems like OpenAI's ChatGPT, following extensive negotiations.

Originally proposed in 2021, the EU expedited the legislation process after ChatGPT gained prominence in 2022, astonishing users with its rapid generation of coherent text, including poetry.

"The AI Office aims to facilitate the future development, deployment, and use of AI in a manner that promotes societal and economic benefits and innovation while addressing associated risks," stated the European Commission.

The 140-member AI Office will be established within the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, and its formidable tech regulator.

Thierry Breton, the EU's top tech enforcer, highlighted that the Office will cultivate an innovative, competitive, and EU rules-compliant AI ecosystem.

The EU's "AI Act" introduces stricter regulations for general-purpose AI systems like ChatGPT and adopts a risk-based approach to the technology. The level of risk posed to Europeans' rights or health determines the extent of obligations for these systems to safeguard individuals from potential harm.

Margrethe Vestager, the commission's executive vice president, emphasized that the AI Office, in collaboration with developers and the scientific community, will assess and test general-purpose AI to ensure it serves humanity and upholds European values.

Companies must adhere to the EU's regulations by 2026, although rules pertaining to AI models like ChatGPT will come into effect 12 months after the law is officially enacted.

The EU's announcement coincided with criticism from EU auditors regarding the commission's insufficient investment in AI to fulfill the bloc's aspirations.

The bloc's spending watchdog underscored the necessity for enhanced governance and increased, well-targeted public and private investment in the EU to realize its AI goals.

But the commission defended the bloc's record and said it was investing more than one billion euros ($1.1 billion) annually in AI research projects under different schemes.