Can the future European regulation on artificial intelligence be a brake on innovation?

A recent report published by the European Parliament's Special Committee on Artificial Intelligence in the Digital Age suggests that the future European regulation could be a brake for companies in the sector. The German deputy of the European People's Party (EPP), Axel Voss, believes that we should not make the same mistakes as with the GDPR.

What does the European regulation on artificial intelligence say?

In April 2021, the European Commission revealed its bill to enforce a new European regulation on artificial intelligence. To sum up, the message is the following: artificial intelligence has incredible potential and that is why it must be framed. According to the President of the Commission: “Whether it is about precision farming, more reliable medical diagnostics or safe autonomous driving, artificial intelligence will open up new worlds for us. But these worlds also need rules.”

In her speech presenting the European regulation on artificial intelligence, Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, drew the lines between the unacceptable, the high risk, the limited risk and the minimal risk for systems using artificial intelligence. 'artificial intelligence. She said there would be no place for mass surveillance in Europe. The Commission wants to ban AI systems that harm people by manipulating their behavior, opinions or decisions.

Can such rules really curb innovation?

The tone is set, the Union absolutely wants to oversee progress in connection with artificial intelligence. However, this new report from the European Parliament's Special Committee on Artificial Intelligence in the Digital Age could have an impact on the European regulation. According to its rapporteur, Axel Voss: “We need a better regulatory framework that also learns from the mistakes of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This is a very strategic development and AI is the most important part of it. So we cannot afford to fail”.

He believes that this future European regulation imposes too many restrictions on European companies, which could lead them not to invest more in these technologies. The report shows that such rules could simply stifle innovation within the European Union. The MEP is not the only one to take a position to change this text. A few weeks ago, Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor herself, stressed the need for “innovation-friendly regulation”.

For Marten Kokk, Deputy Permanent Representative of Estonia to the European Union: “The scope of the measures and the definition of AI systems are currently too broad. Keep in mind that SMBs with moderate capabilities may struggle to understand and keep up with ever-increasing regulatory requirements. It's easier for the big multinationals”. In France, the CNIL this summer expressed its approval and satisfaction with the new rules proposed by the European Commission to regulate artificial intelligence within the Union. On the contrary, nearly 300 associations fear that the text is too broad and that it will lead to abuses...