EU AI Act: How Things Will Change For Businesses By 2027

The EU AI Act came into force on 1^st of August 2024 and will be applied gradually – with key deadlines for providers, operators, and manufacturers of AI systems.

✅ Quick Overview: Key Milestones

• 2^nd February 2025: Start of bans for certain “unacceptable” AI applications (e.g., social scoring, manipulative systems). AI literacy obligations also begin (first requirements for training/competence of operators).
• 2^nd August 2025: Specific obligations for General-Purpose AI (GPAI) take effect for models launched from this date; existing GPAI models will have transition periods.
• 2^nd August 2026: Extensive obligations for High-Risk AI come into force (requirements for risk management, documentation, conformity assessment, etc.).
• 2^nd August 2027: The Act will be fully effective; models already in use before earlier deadlines must demonstrate compliance by this date.

✅ What This Means in Practice

• AI literacy is now a concrete obligation, not just a recommendation: employees and operators must be sufficiently trained and competent. Violations can lead to substantial penalties (fines up to €35 million or up to 7% of global annual turnover in severe cases).
• For GPAI providers (e.g., large foundation model providers), additional transparency and documentation requirements apply – such as summaries of training data and processes for risk management.

✅ Concrete, Immediately Actionable Steps for Companies

1. Set Up an AI Literacy Roadmap

• Tailored training for management, developers, and users; exams/assessments; recurring refreshers.
• Measurement: Participation rates + competence checks (learning KPIs).

2. Quickly Establish Basic Governance

• Model inventory & owner register (who is responsible for which model?).
• Appointment of an internal AI compliance/risk owner.

3. Establish Documentation & Risk Logs

• Model cards, data summaries (especially for GPAI), risk assessments before deployment and during operation.
• Plan review cycles (e.g., quarterly) and define escalation paths.

4. Use Transition Periods – But Don’t Delay

• Existing GPAI models have a transition period (compliance obligations by August 2, 2027 for older models) – use this time for systematic cleanup rather than ad-hoc fixes.

✅ Summary:

• EU regulation turns regulatory uncertainty into concrete action steps.
• Companies that start structured initiatives now (education, governance, documentation) reduce legal risk while building trust with customers and partners.

💬 How is your company preparing for the stricter AI compliance rules? Let’s discuss.

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