Europe · Country briefing
European Union
7 governance documents recorded for European Union. Sections appear only where the archive holds material.
- 7Documents
- 4Legislation
- 6Issuing bodies
- Pre-2023Earliest record
AI governance status
No national AI strategy is recorded for European Union in the archive. 4 legislative or regulatory instruments are on record. Named oversight bodies: European Commission High-Level Expert Group on AI (AI HLEG).
Relevant legislation
- European UnionRegulation12 July 2024
European Union — Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 Artificial Intelligence Act
Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 formally enacted the European Union’s Artificial Intelligence Act. Published in July 2024 and entering into force in August 2024, it codified the risk-based structure agreed in 2023. The Act set…
- European UnionRegulation8 December 2023
European Union — Artificial Intelligence Act Political Agreement
The European Union reached political agreement on the Artificial Intelligence Act in December 2023, advancing the first comprehensive horizontal framework for AI regulation. The agreement used a risk-based structure, ban…
- European UnionRegulation29 June 2023
European Union — Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230
Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 modernised European machinery law for connected, autonomous, and AI-enabled machinery. It replaced the older Machinery Directive and addressed risks created when software or machine learning sys…
- European UnionRegulation17 April 2019
European Union — European Accessibility Act Directive (EU) 2019/882
The European Accessibility Act created accessibility requirements for products and services across the European market, with full enforcement beginning in June 2025. It matters for AI governance because AI tools used in…
Government initiatives
- European UnionGuidance1 April 2019
European Commission — Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI
The European Commission’s Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI introduced a framework that defined trustworthy AI as lawful, ethical, and technically robust. Developed by the High-Level Expert Group on AI, the guidelines…
Education and skills initiatives
- European UnionGuidance1 August 2026
European Union — Conformity Assessment Guidelines for High-Risk AI Systems
The European Union’s 2026 conformity assessment guidance marked the operational phase of the AI Act’s high-risk system requirements. From August 2026, AI systems used in areas such as hiring, medical devices, critical in…
- European UnionGuidance1 February 2025
European Union — AI Act 2025 Ban Phase-In and GPAI Guidelines
In 2025, the European Union moved from adopting the AI Act to phased enforcement. Prohibited AI practices began to apply in February, requiring organisations to remove or audit systems involving practices such as cogniti…
- European UnionRegulation8 December 2023
European Union — Artificial Intelligence Act Political Agreement
The European Union reached political agreement on the Artificial Intelligence Act in December 2023, advancing the first comprehensive horizontal framework for AI regulation. The agreement used a risk-based structure, ban…
Timeline
- 1 April 2019Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI
- 17 April 2019European Accessibility Act Directive (EU) 2019/882
- 29 June 2023Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230
- 8 December 2023Artificial Intelligence Act Political Agreement
- 12 July 2024Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 Artificial Intelligence Act
- 1 February 2025AI Act 2025 Ban Phase-In and GPAI Guidelines
- 1 August 2026Conformity Assessment Guidelines for High-Risk AI Systems
Legislation and proposals
- European UnionRegulation12 July 2024
European Union — Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 Artificial Intelligence Act
Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 formally enacted the European Union’s Artificial Intelligence Act. Published in July 2024 and entering into force in August 2024, it codified the risk-based structure agreed in 2023. The Act set…
- European UnionRegulation8 December 2023
European Union — Artificial Intelligence Act Political Agreement
The European Union reached political agreement on the Artificial Intelligence Act in December 2023, advancing the first comprehensive horizontal framework for AI regulation. The agreement used a risk-based structure, ban…
- European UnionRegulation29 June 2023
European Union — Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230
Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 modernised European machinery law for connected, autonomous, and AI-enabled machinery. It replaced the older Machinery Directive and addressed risks created when software or machine learning sys…
- European UnionRegulation17 April 2019
European Union — European Accessibility Act Directive (EU) 2019/882
The European Accessibility Act created accessibility requirements for products and services across the European market, with full enforcement beginning in June 2025. It matters for AI governance because AI tools used in…
Regulatory guidance
- European UnionGuidance1 August 2026
European Union — Conformity Assessment Guidelines for High-Risk AI Systems
The European Union’s 2026 conformity assessment guidance marked the operational phase of the AI Act’s high-risk system requirements. From August 2026, AI systems used in areas such as hiring, medical devices, critical in…
- European UnionGuidance1 February 2025
European Union — AI Act 2025 Ban Phase-In and GPAI Guidelines
In 2025, the European Union moved from adopting the AI Act to phased enforcement. Prohibited AI practices began to apply in February, requiring organisations to remove or audit systems involving practices such as cogniti…
- European UnionGuidance1 April 2019
European Commission — Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI
The European Commission’s Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI introduced a framework that defined trustworthy AI as lawful, ethical, and technically robust. Developed by the High-Level Expert Group on AI, the guidelines…
Sources
- European Accessibility Act Directive (EU) 2019/882
- Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230
- Conformity Assessment Guidelines for High-Risk AI Systems
- AI Act 2025 Ban Phase-In and GPAI Guidelines
- Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 Artificial Intelligence Act
- Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI
- Artificial Intelligence Act Political Agreement