Companies want the EU AI Act to go easy on them

Right now, the EU (European Union) has the only solid regulatory infrastructure in place to govern the ever-accelerating AI field. Named the EU AI Act, it aims to make sure that companies within the EU and those developing tools for European citizens stay in line with their products. Since regulation is often the kryptonite of big business, several major companies have expressed some opposition toward the EU AI Act.

This act is now official, but its rules won’t be enforced for some time. In August of next year, companies will get a checklist of what they should change in order to remain in compliance with the act. While this is a European act, it still applies to foreign companies whose products affect European citizens. This includes companies like Microsoft, Google, Meta, Amazon, Apple, and so on. So, these companies will need to behave if they want to continue to operate in the EU and avoid hefty fines.

The EU AI Act already has some opposition

Since the act will bring some common-sense regulations and safeguards to keep AI safe, the companies developing the AI don’t want to play by the rules. The actual code of practice that needs to be followed is still being developed, and the EU is inviting companies and scholars to help put the code together, and it received a ton of applications. There were more than 1,000 applications, and some of the biggest AI companies put in their applications.

So, there’s no telling what these rules will be exactly, and we’re going to have to wait almost another year to know what they are. We know that major companies are hoping that the rules aren’t too strict, as this could mean that they might have to scale back their operations in the EU.

A spokesperson told Reuters that Google has submitted an application. Also, Amazon stated that it’s onboard to help establish the code of practice. We’re not sure what sort of sway these companies want to have over the code of practice, but we’re certain that they’ll work to push it in their favor. We don’t know about other companies like Anthropic or Stability AI. There’s a chance that they also contributed to the code, but we don’t know yet.

Companies on the side of regulation

We all know that Google and Amazon are going to try to push the Act to favor themselves, but there are companies that are legitimately doing this to ensure safe AI development. For example, Mozilla Foundation AI Policy lead Maximilian Gahntz gave a statement, “As we enter the stage where many of the AI Act’s obligations are spelled out in more detail, we have to be careful not to allow the big AI players to water down important transparency mandates.”

That reads like poetry, as one of the main issues people face with AI is the lack of transparency. For example, millions of people had their data scraped by LinkedIn before the company even updated its privacy policy. So much of our data is being scraped right in front of our faces, and we don’t even know it.

In another statement, Gahntz expressed his vehement support of regulation, “The AI Act presents the best chance to shine a light on this crucial aspect and illuminate at least part of the black box.” Those on the side of regulation will be happy to know that the Mozilla Foundation also submitted an application.

The EU faced some opposition

The EU AI Act could be a boon for AI regulation and safety, but not everyone feels the same way about it. There are some folks who don’t like the EU’s regulation-forward approach. For example, Mario Draghi, the former European Central Bank chief told the bloc that Europe needs to basically strengthen its AI development in order to keep from falling behind the US and China, Europe’s biggest opposition in AI.

This could potentially be troublesome down the road. The priority should be ensuring the safe development of AI technology, not making it a rat race to beat out the competition. Making AI such a heated battle between countries can’t end well.

The letter

Along with him, there has been a band of companies urging the EU to take it easy with the regulations. Companies like Spotify, SAP, Meta, and Ericsson signed an open letter to the EU demanding some sort of clarity with the regulations.

Some of the letter reads, “Europe can’t afford to miss out on the widespread benefits from responsibly built open AI technologies that will accelerate economic growth and unlock progress in scientific research.” However, the regulations will ensure that the AI is responsibly developed. We’re already seeing some negative effects of AI because it was being developed without any rules or regulations.

Just like Draghi’s argument, the open letter also makes a statement about Europe in competition with other regions to stay ahead of the AI game. This is the sort of mentality that could cause some friction between people who support the regulation and people who oppose it. We’re sure that we’re going to see this friction as the code of practice starts to materialize over the next year.

Along with those companies, Meta’s chief AI scientist, Yann LeCun, said that the EU should “harmonise regulation so that the region does not become a technological backwater.” The only thing is that Meta could stand to benefit greatly from more relaxed AI regulations. So, it’s tough to take these statements at face value.

While these companies are talking about Europe’s competition with the U.S. and China, they’re in their own competition with other companies. So, having a 2-foot-tall fence keeping them in line will let them better compete.

What about the little guy?

As for the native European companies and startups, there are some who hope that the AI Act will be adapted so that they can better flourish. This might involve some special treatment compared to the rest of the companies affected.

For example, Allied for Startups policy manager Maxime Ricard, stated “We’ve insisted these obligations need to be manageable and, if possible, adapted to startups.” This is a true statement, as there should be some framework that will give smaller businesses the ability to grow. Maybe they have exceptions from certain rules until they reach a certain economic status.

This is still a developing matter

Right now, we’re still in the early stages of AI regulation, and that’s a bit of a bummer seeing as the new AI age will reach two years old come November. We’ve already seen some negative effects of AI like creators being replaced by AI models. That’s only going to get worse as more major media and film companies continue to sell out to AI companies and serve up their content.

The EU AI Act will hopefully be the inspiration for other geographical regions to build their laws. It may already be too late, as major AI companies have already scooped up a ton of our data and used it to train their models. We didn’t even find out before the damage was done.

AI technology is going to get better regardless of what rules are in line. However, the only forces that can control these AI companies are the governmental bodies looming over each company. Maybe the EU AI Act could help level the playing field for people who fear the effects of AI technology.