European Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act)
On 1 August 2024, the European Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act) entered into force. The main aim of the act is to foster responsible artificial intelligence development and deployment in the EU.
Proposed by the Commission in April 2021 and agreed by the European Parliament and the Council in December 2023, the AI Act addresses potential risks to citizens’ health, safety, and fundamental rights. It provides developers and deployers with clear requirements and obligations regarding specific uses of AI while reducing administrative and financial burdens for businesses.
Member States had until 2 August 2025 to designate national competent authorities, who will oversee the application of the rules for AI systems and carry out market surveillance activities. The Commission’s AI Office will be the key implementation body for the AI Act at EU-level, as well as the enforcer for the rules for general-purpose AI models.
The majority of rules of the AI Act will start applying on 2 August 2026. However, prohibitions of AI systems deemed to present an unacceptable risk will already apply after six months, while the rules for so-called General-Purpose AI models will apply after 12 months.
To bridge the transitional period before full implementation, the Commission has launched the AI Pact. This initiative invites AI developers to voluntarily adopt key obligations of the AI Act ahead of the legal deadlines.
In November 2025, the Commission proposed targeted amendments to the AI Act as part of the Digital Simplification Package, which aim to ensure the rules remain clear, simple, and innovation-friendly. One of the proposed measures is to reinforce the AI Office’s powers and centralise oversight of AI systems built on general-purpose AI models.
The European AI Office
The European AI Office is the centre of AI expertise across the EU, that promotes the development and deployment of AI solutions that benefit society and the economy.
The European AI Office supports the development and use of trustworthy AI, while protecting against AI risks. The AI Office was established within the European Commission as the centre of AI expertise and forms the foundation for a single European AI governance system.
The EU aims to ensure that AI is safe and trustworthy. For this purpose, the AI Act is the first-ever comprehensive legal framework on AI worldwide, guaranteeing the health, safety and fundamental rights of people, and providing legal certainty to businesses across the 27 Member States.
he organisational set-up of the European AI Office consists of 6 units and 2 advisors, reflecting its mandate. These include:
- “Excellence in AI and Robotics” unit
- “Regulation and Compliance” unit
- “AI Safety” unit
- “AI Innovation and Policy Coordination” unit
- “AI for Societal Good” unit
- “AI in Health and Life Science” unit
- Lead Scientific Advisor
- Advisor for International Affairs