The European Commission has unveiled its new digital package which includes a digital omnibus that streamlines rules on AI, cybersecurity and data, complemented by a Data Union Strategy to unlock high-quality data for AI and European Business Wallets that will offer companies a single digital identity to simplify paperwork and make it much easier to do business across EU Member States. On the EU AI Act, the digital omnibus proposes: (1) Timeline changes (Article 113) — delaying the applicable date for high-risk AI system obligations (currently 2 August 2026) to either 6-12 months after technical standards are approved, or specific dates in December 2027 and August 2028 depending on the Annex listing; (2) Downgrading AI Literacy obligations (Article 4) — shifting from a legal requirement for providers and deployers to implement AI literacy to a requirement for the Commission and Member States to foster it and encourage providers/deployers to take measures; (3) EU AI Office scope expansion (Article 75) — designating the AI Office as the authority responsible for supervision and enforcement of certain AI systems based on general-purpose AI models where the model and system are developed by the same provider; (4) Limiting registration in public EU database (Article 6) — removing the obligation for providers to register an AI system in the public database if it’s used in a high-risk domain (Annex III) but determined and documented by the provider as not high-risk due to the nature of use, though evidence of this assessment must still be provided upon request; and (5) Proportionality for small mid-caps (SMCs) (Article 99) — introducing smaller and more proportionate compliance penalties for SMCs (companies with up to 750 employees and under €150 million annual turnover), which complements the existing proportionality for SMEs and startups. The proposal is subject to trilogue negotiations over the coming months.
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