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AI application ChatGPT: EU Commission should clarify key practical questions in the short term
Photo: Budrul Chukrut / SOPA Images / IMAGO / SOPA Images
The final agreement between the EU member states on the AI Act is expected to take place next Friday. Information from government circles suggests that Germany does not want to stand in the way of the first comprehensive legislative package on artificial intelligence in the Western world.
Just a few days ago it was said that there was still resistance to the law, especially in Volker Wissing's (FDP) Digital Ministry. Although there had already been a basic oral agreement in the Council of Ministers in December, it was not until six weeks later that the final written version of the law was available. It was said that until the weekend before last, numerous key details were unclear, such as the regulation of facial recognition and basic AI models.
According to SPIEGEL information, a group of state secretaries found a compromise on Monday evening. Government circles said they would agree to the AI Act, but would call on the EU Commission to clarify key practical issues in the short term in order to avoid double burdens for the economy. These included, among other things, the relationship to other product regulatory legal acts (medical devices) and legal issues in the further development of AI models (fine-tuning).
The “Handelsblatt” also reports on the agreement.
As SPIEGEL learned, the French government is now also leaning towards a yes to the AI Act. Along with Italy, France was considered a possible shaky candidate. If both countries, along with Germany, abstained from the Council of Member States, there would only be one more country left to miss the qualified majority necessary for approval.
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