AI-Act

• The purpose of this Regulation is to improve the functioning of the internal market by laying down a uniform legal framework in particular for the development, placing on the market, putting into service and the use of artificial intelligence systems in the Union in conformity with Union values, to promote the uptake of human centric and trustworthy artificial intelligence while ensuring a high level of protection of health, safety, fundamental rights enshrined in the Charter, including democracy and rule of law and environmental protection, against harmful effects of artificial intelligence systems in the Union and to support innovation
• This Regulation should be applied in conformity with the values of the Union enshrined in the Charter facilitating the protection of individuals, companies, democracy and rule of law and the environment while boosting innovation and employment and making the Union a leader in the uptake of trustworthy AI
• Artificial intelligence is a fast evolving family of technologies that contributes to a wide array of economic, environmental and societal benefits across the entire spectrum of industries and social activities
• At the same time, depending on the circumstances regarding its specific application, use, and level of technological development, artificial intelligence may generate risks and cause harm to public interests and fundamental rights that are protected by Union law
• Given the major impact that artificial intelligence can have on society and the need to build trust, it is vital for artificial intelligence and its regulatory framework to be developed according to Union values enshrined in Article 2 TEU, the fundamental rights and freedoms enshrined in the Treaties, the Charter. As a pre-requisite, artificial intelligence should be a human-centric technology. It should serve as a tool for people, with the ultimate aim of increasing human well-being
• In order to ensure a consistent and high level of protection of public interests as regards health, safety and fundamental rights, common rules for all high-risk AI systems should be established. Those rules should be consistent with the Charter of fundamental rights of the European Union (the Charter) and should be non-discriminatory and in line with the Union's international trade commitments. They should also take into account the European Declaration on Digital Rights and Principles for the Digital Decade (2023/C 23/01) and the Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence (AI) of the High-Level Expert Group on Artificial Intelligence
• The harmonised rules on the placing on the market, putting into service and use of AI systems laid down in this Regulation should apply across sectors and, in line with its New Legislative Framework approach, should be without prejudice to existing Union law, notably on data protection, consumer protection, fundamental rights, employment, and protection of workers, and product safety, to which this Regulation is complementary
• The fundamental right to the protection of personal data is safeguarded in particular by Regulations (EU) 2016/679 and (EU) 2018/1725 and Directive 2016/680. Directive 2002/58/EC additionally protects private life and the confidentiality of communications, including by way of providing conditions for any personal and non-personal data storing in and access from terminal equipment. Those Union legal acts provide the basis for sustainable and responsible data processing, including where datasets include a mix of personal and non-personal data
• This Regulation should be without prejudice to the provisions regarding the liability of intermediary service providers set out in Directive 2000/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council [as amended by the Digital Services Act]
• AI system


  A system that is based on machine learning approaches, including deep learning, that learn from data; logic- and knowledge-based approaches, including expert systems; statistical approaches; and search-based approaches, including planning and scheduling, that generate outputs such as content, predictions, recommendations, or decisions influencing the environments they interact with
• Deployer


  Any natural or legal person, including a public authority, agency or other body, using an AI system under its authority, except where the AI system is used in the course of a personal non professional activity
• Biometric data


  Data relating to the physical, physiological or behavioural characteristics of a natural person which allow or confirm the unique identification of that natural person, such as facial images, dactyloscopic data, and iris or voice data
• Biometric identification


  The automated recognition of physical, physiological and behavioural human features such as the face, eye movement, body shape, voice, prosody, gait, posture, heart rate, blood pressure, odour, keystrokes characteristics, for the purpose of establishing an individual's identity by comparing biometric data of that individual to stored biometric data of individuals in a reference database, irrespective of whether the individual has given its consent or not
• Biometric data


  Data about the physical or behavioural characteristics of a natural person, which allow or confirm the unique identification of that natural person, such as facial images, dactyloscopic data, DNA sequences, gait patterns, voice patterns, and keystroke dynamics
• Biometric categorisation


  Assigning natural persons to specific categories on the basis of their biometric data, such as sex, age, hair colour, eye colour, tattoos, behavioural or personality traits, language, religion, membership of a national minority, sexual or political orientation
• Remote biometric identification system

  An AI system intended for the identification of natural persons without their active involvement, typically at a distance, through the comparison of a person's biometric data with the biometric data contained in a reference database
• Emotion recognition system


  An AI system for the purpose of identifying or inferring emotions or intentions of natural persons on the basis of their biometric data, such as happiness, sadness, anger, surprise, disgust, embarrassment, excitement, shame, contempt, satisfaction and amusement
• Publicly accessible space


  Any physical place that is accessible to an undetermined number of natural persons, regardless of whether it is privately or publicly owned or the activity for which it may be used
• AI literacy


  Equipping providers, deployers and affected persons with the necessary notions to make informed decisions regarding AI systems, including understanding the correct application of technical elements, measures to be applied during use, interpreting the AI system's output, and knowledge necessary to understand how decisions taken with the assistance of AI will impact them
• This Regulation should apply to providers of AI systems in a non-discriminatory manner, irrespective of whether they are established within the Union or in a third country, and to deployers of AI systems established within the Union
• This Regulation should also apply to Union institutions, offices, bodies and agencies when acting as a provider or deployer of an AI system
• AI systems placed on the market, put into service, or used with or without modification for military, defence or national security purposes are excluded from the scope of this Regulation
• This Regulation should support innovation, respect freedom of science, and should not undermine research and development activity
• AI systems and models specifically developed and put into service for the sole purpose of scientific research and development are excluded from the scope of this Regulation
• It is necessary to exclude from the scope of the Regulation AI systems and models specifically developed and put into service for the sole purpose of scientific research and development
• The provisions of this Regulation should not apply prior to AI systems and models being put into service or placed on the market as a result of product oriented research, testing and development activity
• Any other AI system that may be used for the conduct of any research and development activity should remain subject to the provisions of this Regulation
• Any research and development activity should be carried out in accordance with recognised ethical and professional standards for scientific research and should be conducted according to applicable Union law
• Risk-based approach


  Tailors the type and content of binding rules for AI systems to the intensity and scope of the risks that AI systems can generate
• The Regulation prohibits certain unacceptable artificial intelligence practices, lays down requirements for high-risk AI systems and obligations for the relevant operators, and lays down transparency obligations for certain AI systems
• The 2019 Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI developed by the independent High-Level Expert Group on AI (HLEG) appointed by the Commission contribute to the design of a coherent, trustworthy and human-centric Artificial Intelligence, in line with the Charter and with the values on which the Union is founded
• Ethical principles for Trustworthy AI

  • Human agency and oversight
  • Technical robustness and safety
  • Privacy and data governance
  • Transparency
  • Diversity, non-discrimination and fairness
  • Societal and environmental well-being
  • Accountability
• Aside from the many beneficial uses of artificial intelligence, that technology can also be misused and provide novel and powerful tools for manipulative, exploitative and social control practices
• Such manipulative, exploitative and social control practices are particularly harmful and abusive and should be prohibited because they contradict Union values and fundamental rights
• AI-enabled manipulative techniques


  Techniques used to persuade persons to engage in unwanted behaviours, or to deceive them by nudging them into decisions in a way that subverts and impairs their autonomy, decision-making and free choices
• The placing on the market, putting into service or use of certain AI systems with the objective to or the effect of materially distorting human behaviour, whereby significant harms are likely to occur, are particularly dangerous and should therefore be forbidden
• Biometric categorisation systems that are based on individuals' biometric data to deduce or infer an individuals' political opinions, trade union membership, religious or philosophical beliefs, race, sex life or sexual orientation should be prohibited
• AI systems providing social scoring of natural persons by public or private actors may lead to discriminatory outcomes and the exclusion of certain groups, violating the right to dignity and non-discrimination and the values of equality and justice
• The use of AI systems for 'real-time' remote biometric identification of natural persons in publicly accessible spaces for the purpose of law enforcement is particularly intrusive to the rights and freedoms of the concerned persons
• The use of those systems for the purpose of law enforcement should be prohibited, except in exhaustively listed and narrowly defined situations, where the use is strictly necessary to achieve a substantial public interest, the importance of which outweighs the risks