Google Delays Launch of Bard AI in EU Due to Privacy Issues

The launch of Google Bard in Europe has been postponed due to the intervention of the Irish Data Protection Commission (IDPC), which oversees data in the European Union. The generative AI chatbot was scheduled to be released this week, but the IDPC has demanded a comprehensive privacy briefing, data impact assessment, and supporting information before granting approval. Deputy Commissioner Graham Doyle has stated that the agency has not yet received the necessary details.

According to Doyle, the commission is still in the midst of an “ongoing investigation” of Bard. It did not estimate when it might close the investigation, but it plans to share the information with other EU data protection authorities as quickly as possible.

We asked Google for comment. A Google spokesperson said in a statement to Politico that the company pledged to expand Bard’s access “responsibly” after discussing its efforts with experts and governments. That includes talking to privacy regulars “to answer their questions and hear their feedback,” the representative says.

Google began expanding access to Bard in March, allowing potential users to sign up for a waiting list. In May, it dropped the waiting list and expanded availability to 180 more countries and territories. The technology giant fled the EU, where the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) sets strict requirements for the collection and sharing of personal data.

Other AI developers have already faced stricter scrutiny. Germany, Italy, and Spain are currently investigating OpenAI’s ChatGPT with the European Data Protection Board, and Italy temporarily banned the tool because the chatbot and its training methods (which use other people’s real content) may violate the GDPR. In theory, Bard’s delay minimizes the potential for similar conflicts for Google.