After approving compromise amendments earlier this week, the European Parliament’s Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI) validated the reports on artificial intelligence on ethical aspects, civil liability and intellectual property rights (see EUROPE 12570/2). A plenary vote is scheduled for the end of October.
As a reminder, two of these own-initiative reports are legislative. The report prepared by Ibán García Del Blanco (S&D, Spain) calls on the European Commission to present a new legal framework for ethical principles to be used in the development, deployment and use of AI, robotics and related technologies in the EU. He proposes that very high-risk technology be subject to an “external, impartial and objective ex ante evaluation”.
The report prepared by Axel Voss (EPP, Germany), on the other hand, argues for a compulsory liability regime for these high-risk systems, which would oblige these operators to take out insurance.
Finally, the non-legislative report by Stéphane Séjourné (Renew Europe, France) calls for an impact study on intellectual property rights in the context of AI.
At a press conference, Mr Séjourné said that Europe was at a crossroads and called on the European Commission to establish “an ethical and responsible model that could be exported throughout the world”. These reports should indeed inspire the legislative proposals that the Commission will present in 2021. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)