The European Union (EU) is a torch-bearer in technology governance, particularly in the areas of privacy, data protection, market surveillance, and antitrust. For example, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), introduced in 2018, has set standards for the collection, use, and storage of personal data, and—through its extraterritorial impact—has shaped data protection practices around the world.
Anticipating that the EU would be a first mover in regulating AI, since 2018, The Future Society has been facilitating the development of the EU AI governance regime. Accordingly, we organized our Global Civic Debate on the Rise of AI in the European Parliament in 2018 and have maintained close contact with policymakers and their advisors ever since.
In April 2021, the European Commission published a proposed law for regulating AI systems on its market, the “Artificial Intelligence Act.” Due to its more horizontal scope, its granularity, and its expected extraterritorial “Brussels effect,” the AI Act is widely expected to be one of the most influential pieces of legislation on AI worldwide.
Since 2021, our work in this thematic area has aimed to ensure that the proposed EU AI Act and the surrounding regulatory regime, at large, instill precaution with regard to AI systems with increasingly broad capabilities. We also aim to cultivate dialogues that both reduce the intensity of race dynamics observed in the AI industry and enhance global coordination.
Currently, we are conducting applied research and providing advice to decision-makers to ensure that the AI Act credibly and cost-effectively incentivizes upskilling of developers in trustworthiness, risk and quality management, safety, security, precaution, and overall alignment with fundamental rights. In particular, since 2022, we have conducted research on general-purpose AI systems (GPAIS), informed EU regulators of the risks and opportunities they present, and advocated for investments into research and benchmarking, to better understand, and thereby govern, advanced AI systems.
Workstreams
Endorsements
Related resources
Closing the Gap: Five Recommendations for Improving the Third Draft of the EU Code of Practice for General-Purpose AI
Closing the Gap: Five Recommendations for Improving the Third Draft of the EU Code of Practice for General-Purpose AI
The EU Code of Practice helps providers of General-Purpose AI (GPAI) Models with systemic risks to comply with the EU...
Launch event for the Journal of AI Law and Regulation (AIRe)
Launch event for the Journal of AI Law and Regulation (AIRe)
TFS is partnering with Lexxion Publisher to launch The Journal of AI Law and Regulation (AIRe), covering key legislative developments...
TFS supports the approval of the EU AI Act
TFS supports the approval of the EU AI Act
The Future Society urges European Union Member States and the European Parliament to approve the EU AI Act.
A Blueprint for the European AI Office
A Blueprint for the European AI Office
We are releasing a blueprint for the proposed European AI Office, which puts forward design features that would enable the...
Heavy is the Head that Wears the Crown: A risk-based tiered approach to governing General-Purpose AI
Heavy is the Head that Wears the Crown: A risk-based tiered approach to governing General-Purpose AI
In this blueprint, we explain why a tiered approach makes sense in the EU AI Act and how to build...
Policy achievements in the EU AI Act
Policy achievements in the EU AI Act
The draft AI Act approved by the European Parliament contains a number of provisions for which TFS has been advocating,...
Giving Agency to the AI Act
Giving Agency to the AI Act
Earlier this year, we conducted research comparing different institutional models for an EU-level body to oversee the implementation and enforcement...
TFS champions Regulatory Sandboxes in the EU AI Act
TFS champions Regulatory Sandboxes in the EU AI Act
The Future Society has been advocating for regulatory sandboxes to be implemented via the EU AI Act and designed a...
POLITICO AI & Tech Summit in Brussels
POLITICO AI & Tech Summit in Brussels
This year again, The Future Society is supporting POLITICO for their AI & Tech Summit on April 21st 2022 in…
EU AI Act: Trust in Excellence & Excellence in Trust
EU AI Act: Trust in Excellence & Excellence in Trust
As the European Union develops the first law on AI, The Future Society has actively worked to ensure the text...
Policy Brief on Humanizing the Future of Work
Policy Brief on Humanizing the Future of Work
The Future Society organised two workshops on the Future of Work in the EU with senior decision-makers at the national,...
Will new European AI regulation have GDPR-like impact worldwide? @ MozFest 2021
Will new European AI regulation have GDPR-like impact worldwide? @ MozFest 2021
MozFest is a unique hybrid: part art, tech and society convening, part maker festival, and a gathering for activists in…
POLITICO’s AI Summit – Europe’s digital reckoning?
POLITICO’s AI Summit – Europe’s digital reckoning?
This year again, The Future Society is supporting POLITICO for their AI Summit on May 31st in Brussels and online….
Geopolitics of Artificial Intelligence: Europe claiming its place amid China and the USA
Geopolitics of Artificial Intelligence: Europe claiming its place amid China and the USA
Read our executive brief in collaboration with Agora Strategy Group about the main trends, key figures and issues on how,...
Input on Europe’s future AI policies
Input on Europe’s future AI policies
The Future Society recommends "Experimentation, testing & audit as a cornerstone for trust and excellence" in response to the European...
Workshop on the Ethical Stakes of Facial Recognition Technologies, organized during the French Government’s Public Innovation Week
Workshop on the Ethical Stakes of Facial Recognition Technologies, organized during the French Government’s Public Innovation Week
Following recent advances in facial recognition systems, various stakeholders are planning to experiment their use in France: in airports during...
“AI: New Power Dynamics” (IANP)
“AI: New Power Dynamics” (IANP)
The Future Society had the pleasure to co-host the conference “AI: New Power Dynamics” (IANP) on April 10 and 11…