AKMV 
Artificial Intelligence Act
On March 13, 2024, Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 of the European Parliament and of the Council of June 13, 2024, was adopted, establishing harmonized rules in the field of artificial intelligence and amending Regulations (EC) No. 300/2008, (EU) No. 167/2013, (EU) No. 168/2013, (EU) 2018/858, (EU) 2018/1139, and (EU) 2019/2144, as well as Directives 2014/90/EU, (EU) 2016/797, and (EU) 2020/1828. This regulation is commonly referred to as the Artificial Intelligence Act.
The full text of the regulation is also available in English at the following link.
Since it is a regulation, it is binding for all European Union member states without the need to adopt further national legislation.
The Artificial Intelligence Act represents the very first comprehensive and unified legal framework for artificial intelligence in the world (source: European Commission).
Purpose of the Artificial Intelligence Act
The Artificial Intelligence Act has several objectives, of which we highlight the following:
- to improve the functioning of the internal market by establishing a uniform legal framework, particularly concerning the development, marketing, commissioning, and use of artificial intelligence systems in the Union in accordance with the Union’s values;
- to promote the deployment of trustworthy, human-centric artificial intelligence;
- to ensure a high level of protection of health, safety, and fundamental rights enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, including the protection of democracy, the rule of law, and the environment, safeguarding against harmful effects of AI systems within the Union;
- to support innovation – preventing disparities that hinder the free movement, innovation, deployment, and adoption of AI systems and related products and services within the internal market by establishing uniform obligations for operators and guaranteeing consistent protection of overriding public interest reasons and individual rights across the internal market;
- to foster innovation with special emphasis on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), including startups;
- to create conditions for the use of so-called high-risk systems.
The Artificial Intelligence Act also prohibits the use of AI applications that threaten citizens’ rights (e.g., biometric categorization systems based on sensitive characteristics, or the indiscriminate extraction of facial images from the internet or security camera footage to create facial recognition databases). Exceptions to this prohibition exist (e.g., the use of biometric identification systems for searching for missing persons). AI that manipulates human behavior or exploits human vulnerability is also prohibited (source: European Parliament).
Who does the Artificial Intelligence Act apply to?
According to Article 2, paragraph 1 of the Artificial Intelligence Act, this regulation applies to:
- Providers who place AI systems or AI models for general purposes on the market or put them into operation in the Union, regardless of whether these providers are established or located in the Union or in a third country;
- “Provider” means a natural or legal person, public authority, agency, or other entity that develops an AI system or AI model for general purposes, or has one developed, and places it on the market or puts the AI system into operation under its own name or trademark, whether for payment or free of charge.
- Entities deploying AI systems that are established or located in the Union;
“Deploying entity” means a natural or legal person, public authority, agency, or other entity that uses an AI system within its authority, except when the AI system is used for personal non-professional activities. - Providers of AI systems and entities deploying AI systems that are established or located in a third country, if the output generated by the AI system is used within the Union;
- Importers and distributors of AI systems;
“Importer” means a natural or legal person established or located in the Union who places on the market an AI system bearing the name or trademark of a natural or legal person established in a third country.
“Distributor” means a natural or legal person in the supply chain, other than the provider or importer, who makes the AI system available on the Union market. - Manufacturers of products who place on the market or put into operation an AI system together with their product under their own name or trademark;
- Authorized representatives of providers who are not established in the Union;
- “Authorized representative” means a natural or legal person established or located in the Union who has received and accepted a written mandate from the provider of an AI system or AI model for general purposes to perform on their behalf the obligations and procedures set out in this regulation.
- Data subjects located in the Union.
