First Analysis of the EU Artifical Intelligence Act: Towards a Global Standard for Trustworthy AI?

TL;DR

This paper analyzes the EU AI Act, highlighting its potential to set a global standard for trustworthy AI through comprehensive regulation, despite international challenges and implications for industry and citizens.

Contribution

It provides the first detailed analysis of the EU AI Act's scope, impact, and potential to influence global AI governance standards.

Findings

The EU AI Act is the first comprehensive regulation of its kind.

It imposes progressive compliance requirements on organizations.

The Act has significant implications for global AI governance.

Abstract

The EU Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act) came into force in the European Union (EU) on 1 August 2024. It is a key piece of legislation both for the citizens at the heart of AI technologies and for the industry active in the internal market. The AI Act imposes progressive compliance on organisations - both private and public - involved in the global value chain of AI systems and models marketed and used in the EU. While the Act is unprecedented on an international scale in terms of its horizontal and binding regulatory scope, its global appeal in support of trustworthy AI is one of its major challenges.