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On 27 April 2023, the European Commission published its proposal for a regulation on standard essential patents (SEPs). SEPs are patents that protect technology that has been declared essential in a technical standard or specification developed by a standard development organisation (SDO). The proposed SEPs regulation aims to facilitate SEPs licensing by increasing transparency about SEPs, reducing information asymmetries between SEPs holders and SEPs implementers and facilitating the agreement on ...

In February 2022, the European Commission tabled a proposal for a regulation laying out harmonised rules on fair access to and use of data (the data act). During its first November 2023 plenary session, Parliament is set to vote on the political agreement reached in negotiations with the Council.

The European Parliament started monitoring future shocks during the coronavirus crisis, and has continued to do so during Russia's unprecedented war on Ukraine. The annual 'Future Shocks' series reviews global risks, with a focus on specific risks and the capabilities and resilience of the EU system in the face of multiple challenges. It seeks to provide up-to-date, objective and authoritative information on these risks, based on risk literature from a broad range of sources. 'Future Shocks' includes ...

The European Commission tabled a proposal for an EU regulatory framework on artificial intelligence (AI) in April 2021. The draft AI act is the first ever attempt to enact a horizontal regulation for AI. The proposed legal framework focuses on the specific utilisation of AI systems and associated risks. The Commission proposes to establish a technology-neutral definition of AI systems in EU law and to lay down a classification for AI systems with different requirements and obligations tailored on ...

The European Commission tabled a proposal for an EU regulatory framework on artificial intelligence (AI) in April 2021. The draft AI act is the first comprehensive EU legislation to regulate AI and address its potential harms. Parliament is preparing to debate and vote on the joint report from the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) and Civil Liberties (LIBE) Committees during its June plenary session. This would then set Parliament's position for trilogue negotiations with the Council ...

On 23 February 2022, the European Commission unveiled a proposal for an EU regulation – the data act – laying down harmonised rules on fair access to and use of data. The aim is to remove barriers to consumers and businesses' access to data, in a context in which the volume of data generated by humans and machines is increasing exponentially and becoming a critical factor for innovation by businesses (e.g. algorithm training) and by public authorities (e.g. shaping of smart cities). The proposed ...

General-purpose artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, such as ChatGPT, are quickly transforming the way AI systems are built and deployed. While these technologies are expected to bring huge benefits in the coming years, spurring innovation in many sectors, their disruptive nature raises policy questions around privacy and intellectual property rights, liability and accountability, and concerns about their potential to spread disinformation and misinformation. EU lawmakers need to strike a delicate ...

In February 2022, the European Commission tabled a proposal for a regulation on harmonised rules on fair access to and use of data. The European Parliament's Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE) approved its report on the act in February 2023. Parliament is due to vote on the report during its March I plenary session.

The European Commission published a proposal for a directive on adapting non-contractual civil liability rules to artificial intelligence (the 'AI liability directive') in September 2022. The Commission proposes to complement and modernise the EU liability framework to introduce new rules specific to damages caused by AI systems. The new rules intend to ensure that persons harmed by AI systems enjoy the same level of protection as persons harmed by other technologies in the EU. The AI liability directive ...

The Digital Markets Act (DMA) entered into force on 1 November 2022. The DMA rules apply to large companies – designated as gatekeepers – that provide core platform services such as marketplaces, app stores, online search engines or cloud computing services in the EU. Most of the act's provisions will apply as of 2 May 2023, when the gatekeeper designation procedure will start. That designation follows notification by the respective platforms to the Commission. Operators designated as gatekeepers ...