‘When it comes to making AI available to Europeans, EU regulators are still moving at a snail’s pace’

In recent months, the political focus in European capitals has shifted sharply to Europe’s competitiveness crisis. A report by Mario Draghi in September underlined the “existential challenge” facing the continent: sluggish productivity, a growing gap between the living standards of Europeans and Americans, a tech sector dwarfed by its competitors, and a complicated patchwork of regulations holding businesses back.

It was a stark warning for Europe to get its act together before it is too late, and for many in Brussels it was the moment the penny really dropped about the true extent of the crisis the continent is facing and the urgency with which it needs to act to promote growth and innovation. Many European leaders hope artificial intelligence (AI) will play a big role in dragging the continent out of its economic slump. President Emmanuel Macron wants France to become a leader in AI, and Ursula von der Leyen recently called for Europe to become the “AI continent.” Yet when it comes to actually making AI available to Europeans, European Union regulators are still moving at a snail’s pace.

For months, data protection authorities have dragged their feet on deciding when and how companies can use data for training AI models, delaying Meta and other companies from training models with content shared publicly by adults online. This week, the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) weighed in with a formal opinion that was similar to the approach recommended by tech companies, innovators and informed commentators more than nine months ago.

And yet this isn’t the end of the matter. It is now up to individual data protection authorities across the EU to interpret the EDPB’s opinion and decide how to implement it. Meanwhile, others are racing ahead. While European regulators deliberated over this decision for nearly a year, at least 8 significant AI models have been released, and regulators in the United Kingdom, United States, Brazil and elsewhere have made clear training on local data can proceed with safeguards in place. Why is there such a lack of urgency in the EU? As a proud European, I share the hope that AI could give Europe the boost it so badly needs.

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Publish date : 2024-12-20 07:16:00

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