A new partial compromise on the AI Act, seen by EURACTIV on Friday (16 September) further elaborates on the concept of the ‘extra layer’ that would qualify an AI as high-risk only if it has a major impact on decision-making.
The AI Act is a landmark proposal to regulate Artificial Intelligence in the EU following a risk-based approach. Therefore, the category of high-risk is a key part of the regulation, as these are the categories with the strongest impact on human safety and fundamental rights.
On Friday, the Czech Presidency of the EU Council circulated the new compromise, which attempts to address the outstanding concerns related to the categorisation of high-risk systems and the related obligations for AI providers.
The text focuses on the first 30 articles of the proposal and also covers the definition of AI, the scope of the regulation, and the prohibited AI applications. The document will be the basis for a technical discussion at the Telecom Working Party meeting on 22 September.
High-risk systems’ classification
In July, the Czech presidency proposed adding an extra layer to determine if an AI system entails high risks, namely the condition that the high-risk system would have to play a major factor in shaping the final decision.
The central idea is to create more legal certainty and prevent AI applications that are “purely accessory” to decision-making from falling under the scope. The presidency wants the European Commission to define the concept of purely accessory via implementing act within one year since the regulation’s entry into force.
The principle that a system that takes decisions without human review will be considered high-risk has been removed because “not all AI systems that are automated are necessarily high-risk, and because such a provision could be prone to circumvention by putting a human in the middle”.
In addition, the text states that when the EU executive updates the list of high-risk applications, it will have to consider the potential benefit the AI can have for individuals or society at large instead of just the potential for harm.
The presidency did not change the high-risk categories listed under Annex III, but it introduced significant rewording. In addition, the text now explicitly states that the conditions for the Commission to take applications out of the high-risk list are cumulative.