At an event organised by the Financial Times and sponsored by Google on Tuesday 25 March, Commission Vice-President Henna Virkkunen gave a first glimpse of the details of the so-called AI Continent action plan that the Commission plans to publish on 9 April.
This will consist of five pillars: “infrastructure, data access, cloud, talent and skills and simplification”.
According to the Commissioner, the Commission also plans to carry out a ‘digital fitness check’ to make sure that the rules ‘are fit for purpose’ and in line with European objectives.
“We know there are overlapping parts - it is often the same small and medium-sized companies that need to comply with the different rules”, said Henna Virkkunen, who drew on her experience as an MEP to stress the many “overlaps” in the rules created “in the last ten to fifteen years”.
“We need to think about how to reduce bureaucracy, including the many reporting obligations”, she added.
At her hearing at the European Parliament, Henna Virkkunen pledged to make Europe an “AI Continent" (see EUROPE 13522/4).
The Commission has already launched a major artificial intelligence initiative, with an announced budget of €200 billion (see EUROPE 13577/14), mainly for AI factories (see EUROPE 13598/9). (Original version in French by Isalia Stieffatre)