The European Union AI Act will have a profound effect on businesses in the Channel that use the technology when it comes into force in August – for the better - according to industry experts.
The Act – the first of its kind by a major regulator - was passed in March 2024 to establish a common and comprehensive regulatory and legal framework for AI within the EU.
The new legislation addresses the risks of using AI as well as ensuring the technology meets fundamental rights, safety and ethical principles within Europe and outside.
It is used to assess AI systems according to their risk and then they are regulated accordingly, requiring suppliers, importers, distributors and deployers to fulfil various requirements.
Rodney Perry, head of data and analytics at Making Science, said that the Act will “significantly reshape” the AI landscape for both businesses and consumers, increasing the importance put on transparency and safety. This is borne out by the fact that it mandates developers to adhere to stricter rules while also placing specific responsibilities on deployers of the technology to mitigate issues associated with high-risk AI systems.
“Businesses deploying AI tools for advertising must reassess their AI practices to ensure compliance,” said Perry. “The Act's stringent prohibitions on biometric categorisation, facial recognition databases, and social scoring will require advertisers to shift towards more ethical targeting and personalisation strategies. The transparency requirements, particularly regarding the publication of training data, could also affect how machine learning models are trained and utilised.
"Consumers will feel the positive impact of these changes, benefiting from increased protections against manipulative AI practices, which will enhance trust in AI-driven services. Businesses must prepare now to meet these new standards. Leveraging a partner with expertise in aligned technology will not only enable businesses to comply with regulations but foster a trustworthy digital ecosystem that supports innovation and success.”
Correct guardrails
Christoph Kruse, marketing director at MINT, said that as AI will start to impact many different areas, it’s key to put the right guardrails and regulations so that the technology isn’t exploited. In this vein, he said that it’s critical for civil actors such as legislative bodies to show they understand its impact and will subsequently ensure its safety while supporting the huge business potential it holds.
“The gradual approach that the EU AI Act is taking is also the right one to make sure that innovations can thrive in the European Union,” said Kruse. “From a business perspective, we believe that AI should empower human thinking, not replace it.
“AI can process information much faster and reduce a lot of the tiresome manual work, allowing humans to take over more strategic tasks. It should support decision making by bringing intelligence to the vast amounts of data that companies own, but the ultimate decision-making should be with humans.
“In the marketing arena, decision makers are shifting their focus in the use of AI from creative tasks to the optimisation of processes and supporting the management of all aspects of the advertising workflow. The companies that deploy the right strategy and foster a collaborative environment in which humans utilise AI to save time, reduce manual mistakes but also open up new possibilities that were not possible in the pre-AI age, are the ones that will thrive.”
David Evans, vice president of product management at GoTo, said that rather than restricting AI’s innovation, the Act would provide better governance of the technology, which will only improve its application in a wide range of cases. This will enable greater trust in AI, thus furthering its success, he said.
“As noted by EU authorities, this law is not the end of AI innovation, but rather the start of a journey towards better governance that will balance efficiency with essential safeguards,” said Evans. “Strict regulation based on risk levels will only improve AI’s positive use cases – across the It sector and beyond – trust is critical to the success of AI, and safeguards like this are an essential way to deliver the benefits while minimising potential threats as they evolve.”
Dr Ellison Anne Williams, Enveil founder and CEO, said, “The EU's AI Act is another significant milestone in promoting the responsible, safe and secure adoption and implementation of AI across organisations and industries. It also emphasises the importance of data privacy in shaping the future of AI innovation.
“The U.S. and EU have set a precedent for other regions to follow by laying the foundations for organisations to address risks, uphold privacy and prioritise security when using AI. In time, I hope to see more global collaboration, new frameworks emerge and greater support for privacy enhancing technologies that will further enable organisations to safely and securely leverage AI to enable transformative business benefits and innovation, while safeguarding data privacy and security at the same time."