Headlines
EU sticks with timeline for AI rules
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on July 4, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on July 4, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
The EU will adhere to its AI rules timeline, dismissing industry calls for delays. The AI Act will affect general and high-risk models starting August 2026.
By Foo Yun Chee
BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Union's landmark rules on artificial intelligence will be rolled out according to the legal timeline in the legislation, the European Commission said on Friday, dismissing calls from some companies and countries for a pause.
Google owner Alphabet, Facebook owner Meta and other U.S. companies as well as European businesses such as Mistral and ASML have in recent days urged the Commission to delay the AI Act by years.
"I've seen, indeed, a lot of reporting, a lot of letters and a lot of things being said on the AI Act. Let me be as clear as possible, there is no stop the clock. There is no grace period. There is no pause," Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier told a press conference.
"We have legal deadlines established in a legal text. The provisions kicked in February, general purpose AI model obligations will begin in August, and next year, we have the obligations for high risk models that will kick in in August 2026," he said.
The Commission plans to propose steps to simplify its digital rules towards the end of the year, such as cutting back on reporting obligations for small companies.
Some companies have voiced concerns about the compliance costs and tough requirements of the AI rules, which aim to set guardrails on a technology key to multiple sectors of the economy and currently led by the United States and China.
(Reporting by Foo Yun CheeEditing by Mark Potter)
The European Commission confirmed that the AI regulations will be rolled out according to the established legal timeline, with no delays.
Companies like Google owner Alphabet and Facebook owner Meta, along with European businesses such as Mistral and ASML, have urged the Commission to delay the AI Act.
The provisions of the AI Act kicked in February, general purpose AI model obligations will begin in August, and obligations for high-risk AI will start next year.
Some companies have expressed concerns about the compliance costs and tough requirements set by the AI rules, which aim to regulate a technology crucial for various sectors.
The Commission plans to propose steps to simplify its digital rules by the end of the year, including reducing reporting obligations for small companies.
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