The EU AI Act Newsletter

Talks on delaying the AI Act collapse over industrial AI, Merz diverges from his coalition partner, and Parliament invites Anthropic to a hearing on the Mythos model.
Legislative Process
EU legislators fail to clinch deal to delay AI law: Pieter Haeck from POLITICO describes how EU legislators failed to agree on a rollback of the bloc's AI rules, with requirements for machinery and medical devices emerging as the main sticking point. After hours of talks, negotiators from the European Parliament and EU countries parted ways without a deal that would have delayed a key part of the AI Act until December 2027 and banned AI nudification apps, and no date has been set to resume discussions. Because new rules for high-risk AI applications are due to apply this August, the collapse tightens the timeline to avoid legal uncertainty. At the heart of the dispute, the centre-right in Parliament, backed by Germany, is pushing to let products such as machinery and medical devices comply with sectoral law rather than the AI Act, a move opposed by several member states and the centre-left.
Merz's coalition partner opposed his push to cut EU's AI rules: Maximilian Henning, reporting for Euractiv, reveals [...]
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Outline:
(00:36) Legislative Process
(04:04) Analyses
(08:06) Tools & Resources
(08:57) Discussion about this post
(09:00) Ready for more?
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First published:

May 4th, 2026


Source:

https://artificialintelligenceact.substack.com/p/the-eu-ai-act-newsletter-101-trilogue

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Celebrating 100 editions of the newsletter with Virkkunen's vision for the AI Continent, the Omnibus endgame, and Europe's frontier AI access question.
This is the 100th edition of the newsletter. To mark the occasion, I've opened an Ask Me Anything in the Substack chat – questions, reflections and predictions all welcome.
Legislative Process
Building AI the European way: Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, reflects on the first year of the Commission's AI Continent Action Plan, which was built around five pillars: infrastructure, data, skills, adoption and simplification. On the infrastructure side, 19 AI Factories have been deployed across European supercomputers, whilst the proposed AI Gigafactories concept has already attracted 76 expressions of interest spanning 16 Member States. Turning to adoption, €1 billion in funding calls has been mobilised for strategic sectors, alongside targeted initiatives such as AI-powered cancer and cardiovascular screening centres and a Grand Challenge competition to develop sovereign European AI models. Meanwhile, the AI Omnibus, delivered in November, seeks to adjust the the AI Act's timeline and address implementation challenges. Virkkunen frames these together as a distinctly European approach that manages risk whilst encouraging innovation. Finally, she announces a forthcoming tech [...]
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Outline:
(00:49) Legislative Process
(02:06) Analyses
(07:29) Whats Next?
(08:30) Discussion about this post
(08:34) Ready for more?
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First published:

April 20th, 2026


Source:

https://artificialintelligenceact.substack.com/p/the-eu-ai-act-newsletter-100-the

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Beyond the "US innovates, Europe regulates" divide..
Legislative Process
MEPs agree on proposals to simplify AI rules: The European Parliament adopted its position on an AI Act simplification proposal with 569 votes in favour, 45 against and 23 abstentions. Notably, the proposal delays rules for high-risk AI systems to allow implementation guidance and standards preparation. MEPs introduce fixed application dates: 2 December 2027 for high-risk systems and 2 August 2028 for systems covered by EU sectoral safety legislation. Additionally, MEPs grant providers until 2 November 2026 for watermarking compliance. They’re introducing a ban on “nudifier” systems that create or manipulate sexually explicit images of identifiable people without consent. This excludes systems with effective safeguards. Furthermore, MEPs permit personal data processing to detect and correct biases in AI system provided strict necessity safeguards are in place. They back extending SME support measures to small mid-cap enterprises. MEPs argue that AI Act obligations can be less stringent for products already regulated under sectoral laws. Following the Parliament's adoption, negotiations with the Council on the law's final form can now begin.
Analyses
Beyond “US Innovates, Europe Regulates”: Julia Tréhu, Program Manager and Fellow, and Adrienne Goldstein, Senior Program Coordinator, at the [...]
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Outline:
(00:30) Legislative Process
(01:56) Analyses
(08:37) Discussion about this post
(08:41) Ready for more?
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First published:

April 7th, 2026


Source:

https://artificialintelligenceact.substack.com/p/the-eu-ai-act-newsletter-99-bridging

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MEPs adopted a joint position on simplifying the AI Act with 101 votes in favour, nine against and eight abstentions. The Council agreed on streamlining AI rules..
Legislative Process
MEPs support postponement of certain rules: Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) adopted a joint position on simplifying the AI Act, with 101 votes in favour, 9 against and 8 abstentions. Notably, the proposal supports postponing activation of certain high-risk AI system rules, given that key standards may not be finalised by the 2 August 2026 deadline. To ensure predictability, MEPs propose fixed application dates: 2 December 2027 for high-risk systems and 2 August 2028 for systems covered by EU sectorial safety legislation. In addition, MEPs favour shorter watermarking compliance extensions until 2 November 2026. Separately, they introduce a ban on “nudifier” systems creating or manipulating sexually explicit images resembling identifiable persons without consent, excluding systems with effective safeguards. They also back extending SME support measures to small mid-cap enterprises. Following the Parliament's plenary vote expected on 26 March, negotiations with the Council will commence.
Council agrees its position to streamline rules: The Council has agreed its position on streamlining AI rules, treating the proposal with utmost priority. Member [...]
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Outline:
(00:41) Legislative Process
(03:09) Analyses
(09:18) Discussion about this post
(09:22) Ready for more?
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First published:

March 24th, 2026


Source:

https://artificialintelligenceact.substack.com/p/the-eu-ai-act-newsletter-98-parliament

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The 2026 International AI Safety Report was launched at the New Delhi AI Impact Summit. Lead writer Carina Prunkl discusses its relevance for AI Act implementation..
Legislative Process
Commission publishes second draft of Code of Practice on marking and labelling of AI-generated content: The European Commission is facilitating a voluntary code of practice to help providers and deployers comply with Article 50 of the AI Act, which mandates marking and labelling of AI-generated content. This second draft incorporates feedback from hundreds of stakeholders, including industry, academia and civil society, gathered through surveys, meetings and workshops in January 2026, alongside contributions from Member States and European Parliament representatives. The revised code has been streamlined to reduce compliance burden whilst promoting open standards and an EU icon for labelling. The code comprises two sections: Section 1 addresses marking and detecting AI content for generative AI system providers, with enhanced flexibility and clarity; Section 2 targets deployers, focusing on labelling deepfakes and text on matters of public interest, adopting a more flexible and practice-oriented approach. Feedback on this draft is due by 30 March, with finalisation expected by early June 2026. The transparency rules become applicable on 2 August 2026.
Analyses
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Outline:
(00:39) Legislative Process
(02:00) Analyses
(08:38) Discussion about this post
(08:42) Ready for more?
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First published:

March 9th, 2026


Source:

https://artificialintelligenceact.substack.com/p/the-eu-ai-act-newsletter-97-safety

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