Meet the EU’s AI office

The EU has announced it’s building a new AI office which will be filled with 140 tech experts, lawyers, political scientists, and economists that will help enforce its recently passed AI Act, which is a risk-based regulatory framework designed to regulate and govern the development of AI across Europe, while encouraging uptake and stimulating innovation.

What the AI office will do

The new office has five units that will focus on different areas of AI development and governance.

One unit will oversee “regulation and compliance” which will involve liaising with EU Member States to support the coordinated application and enforcement of the AI Act and “will contribute to investigations and possible infringements, administering sanctions.”

The second unit will focus solely on “AI Safety” and identify systemic risks of general-purpose AI models, find mitigation measures, and introduce appropriate evaluation and testing methods.

The third unit will focus on “Excellence in AI and Robotics” which will include supporting and funding AI R&D.

The fourth is for “AI for Social Good” and will support projects where AI could have a positive impact on society, such as weather modeling and cancer diagnoses, and the fifth will look at “AI Innovation and Policy Coordination”, which will aim to stimulate the uptake of AI, fostering an innovative ecosystem across Europe.

Why has the EU created the AI office?  

The EU has created this office to encourage the development and widespread adoption of AI, across Europe, in a way that cultivates economic and social benefits and encourages innovation, while mitigating risks. It hopes that the Office and AI Act (which is a world-first legislation) will also inspire other countries to take action and regulate AI while increasing uptake.

"Together with developers and a scientific community, the office will evaluate and test general-purpose AI to ensure that AI serves us as humans and upholds our European values." – Margrethe Vestager, Commission Executive VP