The chief executives of large European companies including Airbus and BNP Paribas have urged Brussels to halt its landmark artificial intelligence act, as the EU considers watering down key elements of the law due to come into force in August.
In an open letter, seen by the Financial Times, the heads of 44 major firms on the continent called on European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to introduce a two-year pause, warning that unclear and overlapping regulations are threatening the bloc’s competitiveness in the global AI race.
The letter said that the EU’s complex rules puts “Europe’s AI ambitions at risk, as it jeopardises not only the development of European champions, but also the ability of all industries to deploy AI at the scale required by global competition.” Co-signatories also included the chiefs of French retailer Carrefour and Dutch healthcare group Philips.