EU's new AI Office to act as global standard-setter in Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence - Image by Alejandro Zorrilal Cruz
(BRUSSELS) - The EU Commission unveiled its new AI Office Wednesday, aiming to enable the future development, deployment and use of AI in a way that fosters economic benefits and innovation, and mitigates risks.
The Office is expected to play an important role in implementation of the AI Act, especially in relation to general-purpose AI models. It will also work to foster research and innovation in trustworthy AI and position the EU as a leader in international discussions.
The AI office is composed of:
- Regulation and Compliance Unit that coordinates the regulatory approach to facilitate the uniform application and enforcement of the AI Act across the EU. The unit will contribute to investigations and possible infringements, administering sanctions;
- Unit on AI safety focusing on the identification of systemic risks of very capable general-purpose models, possible mitigation measures as well as evaluation and testing approaches;
- Excellence in AI and Robotics Unit that supports and funds research and development to foster an ecosystem of excellence. It coordinates the GenAI4EU initiative, stimulating development of models and their integration into innovative applications;
- AI for Societal Good Unit to design and implement the international engagement of the AI Office in AI for good, such as weather modelling, cancer diagnoses and digital twins for reconstruction;
- AI Innovation and Policy Coordination Unit that oversees the execution of the EU AI strategy, monitoring trends and investment, stimulating the uptake of AI through a network of European Digital Innovation Hubs and the establishment of AI Factories, and fostering an innovative ecosystem by supporting regulatory sandboxes and real-world testing.
The Office, employing more than 140 staff, including technology specialists, administrative assistants, lawyers, policy specialists, and economists, will also directly enforce the rules for general-purpose AI models. In cooperation with AI developers, the scientific community and other stakeholders, the AI Office will coordinate the drawing up of state-of-the-art codes of practice, conduct testing and evaluation of general-purpose AI models, request information as well as apply sanctions, when necessary.
To ensure well-informed decision-making, the AI Office will collaborate with Member States and the wider expert community through dedicated fora and expert groups. At EU-level the AI Office will work closely with the European Artificial Intelligence Board composed of representatives of Member States. The Scientific Panel of independent experts will ensure a strong link with the scientific community and further expertise will be gathered in an Advisory Forum, representing a balanced selection of stakeholders, including industry, startups and SMEs, academia, think tanks and civil society.
The AI Office will provide advice on best practices and enabling access to AI sandboxes, real-world testing and other European support structures for AI uptake, such as the Testing and Experimentation Facilities in AI, the European Digital Innovation Hubs, and the AI Factories. It will support research and innovation activities in the field of AI and robotics and implements initiatives, such as GenAI4EU, to ensure that AI general-purpose models made in Europe and trained through EU supercomputers are finetuned and integrated into novel applications across the economy, stimulating investment.