one year on
EU Council gives final approval to AI Act
The European Union’s landmark regulation will come into force in about three weeks time, with phased obligations for AI systems based on risk level, after formal approval from the Council of the EU.
On 21 May 2024, the Council of the European Union formally approved the artificial intelligence (AI) Act, completing the legislative process. The regulation will come into force in about three weeks time, with the new regulations being phased in over the course of the coming months and years.
The AI Act follows a risk-based approach: systems posing limited risk face light transparency obligations; high-risk systems must meet strict requirements before market entry; and applications deemed unacceptable—such as cognitive behavioral manipulation, social scoring, and predictive policing based on profiling—are banned outright. General-purpose AI models without systemic risk face limited transparency rules, while those with systemic risk face stricter compliance.
The law applies only within EU law areas, exempting systems used purely for research and for military or defense purposes. The Council emphasizes that the regulation aims to “foster the development and uptake of safe and trustworthy AI systems across the EU’s single market” while ensuring “respect of fundamental rights of EU citizens.” The text of the provisional agreement was released on 2 February 2024.
The record
Senior Managing Editor for AIhub, reporting that the law aims to foster safe and trustworthy AI while respecting fundamental rights
One year later — open only if you can handle spoilers
The AI Act entered into force in August 2024 as scheduled, with the first bans on prohibited practices taking effect in February 2025. Many non-EU companies adopted its framework voluntarily, while some critics argue the phased implementation has slowed enforcement against rapidly evolving generative AI systems.