EU tech chief says bloc 'well equipped' to fend off rogue AI risk

EU’s AI Act Shields Europe from Rogue AI Risks, Says Tech Chief Virkkunen

EU AI Act: Addressing Concerns and Ensuring Safety

By Foo Yun Chee

EU’s Preparedness Against Rogue AI

BRUSSELS, Oct 9 (Reuters) - European Union rules setting guardrails on AI use adopted by the bloc two years ago are more than capable of tackling rogue agents, EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen told Reuters on Friday. 

There are mounting concerns worldwide triggered by recent incidents at OpenAI and Anthropic, sparking fears that rogue AI systems may slip beyond human control.

The AI Act: Strictest Global Standards

The EU's AI Act, which regulates the use of the technology based on the level of risk, is seen as embodying the world's strictest rules on artificial intelligence technology.

"We see that the safety and security of very capable models is a very hot topic internationally and we in Europe are well equipped for that," Virkkunen said in an interview.

"We have our AI Act in place and the AI Act covers the whole life cycle of these models," she added.

Guidance and Oversight for Companies

Regulators are providing guidance to companies on how to evaluate their models and how much time to allocate for this and would also factor in recommendations from a scientific panel of 60 AI experts from universities and institutions, she said. 

Addressing Criticism and Future Developments

Virkkunen dismissed criticism from some companies that the bloc's AI rules are already outdated.

"Our legislators and decision makers, I think that they have been taking into account very well already the coming developments, for example how they saw that the risks have to be assessed and external experts have to be used and they have to continue monitoring the models," she said. 

Regulatory Actions and Industry Response

Information Requests and Potential Penalties

The European Commission sent requests for information in late August to more than 30 AI companies asking for details of their safety and security measures and followed up with questions about their transparency and copyright obligations.

Such requests can lead to investigations that could result in fines of as much as 7% of a company's global annual turnover.

The Commission did not name the companies it had approached.

Virkkunen said she is now assessing the responses.

Global Scope: Chinese and US AI Models

Asked about Chinese AI startups, Virkkunen said the Commission had "also sent requests for information to them", adding that the "most capable models" now in the markets were from the United States and China.

"I think that all these capable models, of course they are posing new kinds of risks that we have to be aware of," she said.

Future Policy Considerations

Debate Over Digital Levy

On whether the bloc should impose a digital levy which would fall mainly on big US tech companies, Virkkunen said the ball was in the court of EU governments which are now discussing new sources of financing for the EU budget for 2028 to 2034. 

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Alexander Smith)