By Foo Yun Chee
BRUSSELS, May 7 (Reuters) - EU countries and European Parliament lawmakers on Thursday agreed to watered-down landmark artificial intelligence rules, including delaying their implementation, in a move which critics say shows Europe caving to Big Tech.
The tentative agreement, which needs to be formally endorsed by EU governments and the European Parliament in the coming months, came after nine hours of negotiations.
"Today's agreement on the AI Act significantly supports our companies
by reducing recurring administrative costs," Marilena Raouna, Cyprus's deputy minister for European affairs, said in a statement. Cyprus currently holds the rotating EU Council presidency.
The changes to the AI Act, which entered into force in August 2024 with key elements to be enforced in stages, are part of the European Commission's push to simplify a slew of new digital rules.
The simplification drive came after businesses complained about overlapping regulations and red tape that hamper their ability to compete with U.S. and Asian rivals.
EU governments and lawmakers agreed to delay rules on high-risk AI systems such as those involving biometrics or related to critical infrastructure and law enforcement to December 2, 2027 from a previous deadline of August 2 this year.
They also agreed to exclude machinery from the AI Act as it is already subject to sectoral rules, ceding to pressure from businesses.
There was also agreement on a ban on AI practices which create unauthorised sexually explicit images, a move responding to such content generated by Elon Musk's xAI chatbot Grok on X and sexually intimate deepfakes produced by Grok. The ban will apply from December 2.
"By the end of this year everyone, but especially women and girls will be safe from horrific nudifier apps being widely available on the EU market. Today we put a clear end to this kind of violence against people and children," said Dutch lawmaker Kim van Sparrentak.
Mandatory watermarking of AI generated output will apply from December 2.
The AI rules, which were triggered by concerns about the impact of the technology on children, workers, companies and cybersecurity, are still considered the strictest in the world even after the changes.
(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Lincoln Feast.)
