▲ European Union (EU)
The European Union's (EU) artificial intelligence (AI) regulations take effect on the 3rd (local time).
The EU previously introduced the AI Act, the world's first comprehensive legislation regulating AI, in 2024.
Following the enforcement of the AI Act, new generative AI content released starting today must be labeled as AI-generated, and users must be clearly informed in advance when interacting with AI systems such as chatbots that they are conversing with AI.
However, existing AI systems are granted a grace period until December 2 to comply with the new regulations.
To enforce the regulations, the EU has established an AI Office under the European Commission, consisting of dozens of technical experts, lawyers, and economists, to verify whether general-purpose AI models, such as chatbots, comply with the regulations.
If the EU determines that a company has violated the regulations, it can order the violation to be corrected and impose fines if the order is not fulfilled.
Companies receiving the heaviest fines must pay the greater of up to 7 percent of their global annual turnover or 34 million euros.
With the authority to levy fines against companies that violate AI regulations, the European Commission is seen as further solidifying its role as the world's most influential regulatory body in the field of AI technology.
In addition, further regulations under the AI Act are scheduled to be implemented sequentially starting later this year.
Beginning in December, AI systems that generate sexually explicit deepfakes will be banned.
This measure was introduced after Tesla CEO Elon Musk's AI chatbot Grok sparked controversy by generating nude images without consent.
Regulations on high-risk AI models deemed capable of threatening safety, health, and fundamental citizens' rights have been postponed to take effect in December next year to provide companies with additional time to prepare.
Ahead of the implementation of the AI regulations, EU Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen stated, "These measures are designed to reduce deception and manipulation and help people make well-informed choices."
Virkkunen added, "AI is an innovative technology that can bring tremendous benefits to European citizens and businesses, but it can cause harm if not properly designed and used," noting that "it has been confirmed that the most advanced AI models, in particular, can pose new risks on a scale unlike anything seen before."
Meanwhile, observations suggest that the United States may backlash as the EU's AI regulations go into effect.
The U.S. administration under Donald Trump has expressed overt dissatisfaction, claiming that the EU is squeezing U.S. big tech companies under the pretext of digital regulations.
There is also criticism from the industry that the EU's AI regulations may impose unnecessary burdens on tech companies and hinder innovation.
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