EU and US Advance Bilateral Talks on AI, Cybersecurity

The European Commission’s top technology official is in Washington this week for talks with U.S. leaders on artificial intelligence regulation, cybersecurity, and the development of 5G and 6G cellular networks.

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Roberto Viola, the commission’s director general for communication, networks, content and technology, told reporters Wednesday the meetings are in part designed to advance an administrative agreement the European Union and United States signed in 2023 on AI and computing.

“One thing is to sign a piece of paper; the other is to realize it,” Viola said during a press briefing held at the Delegation of the European Union to the United States.

The agreement aims to improve EU-U.S. collaboration on using emerging technologies to address global challenges such as climate change, natural disasters and issues surrounding healthcare, energy and agriculture. Viola, who signed the agreement during a virtual ceremony at the White House and in Brussels in January 2023, said the latest bilateral discussions have focused on developing common standards and enhancing cooperation with the private sector.

The trip comes two months after the European Parliament approved what EU lawmakers hailed at the time as the world’s first binding law on AI, which bans schools and workplaces from using high-risk AI applications such as emotion recognition (see: EU Parliament Approves the Artificial Intelligence Act). The U.S. has secured voluntary commitments from leading developers and technology companies to responsibly build and deploy advanced AI models.

“In a way, it’s good that they take commitments,” Viola said of the U.S. government securing voluntary agreements from AI developers. “Our angle is a bit different.”

The AI Act requires EU-based AI companies to comply with transparency regulations and disclose copyright details for all content used to train their models. Advanced general-purpose AI systems will also be required to undergo model evaluations, systemic risk assessments and security incident reporting. Many of the rules included in the sweeping legislation will go into effect over the next year.

Viola participated in a Wednesday discussion with Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber Anne Neuberger and said he was scheduled to attend multiple Thursday roundtables with U.S. lawmakers and the Chamber of Commerce.