EU Fails to Agree on AI Act Softening

The European Parliament and member states failed to reach an agreement on Tuesday after 12 hours of negotiations intended to soften the EU AI Act. The talks were part of the European Commission's Digital Omnibus, a proposal launched on November 19 to simplify digital rules and increase business competitiveness.

Negotiations collapsed over disputes regarding exemptions for industries already governed by sectoral safety regulations, including those producing toys and medical devices. Although both parties had previously agreed to postpone enforcement deadlines for high-risk AI systems to December 2027 and August 2028 due to a lack of technical standards, the failure to finalize the deal leaves the original August 2 deadline in effect.

If a consensus is not reached when negotiations resume in May, high-risk obligations will trigger as originally drafted. Prohibitions on unacceptable-risk AI and rules for general-purpose AI remain on their existing schedules. Dutch lawmaker Kim van Sparrentak characterized the deadlock as a source of regulatory chaos.