These Models May Not Be Subject to Europe’s AI Regulations
LONDON: The European Union’s landmark artificial intelligence (AI) law could exempt open-source models from strict regulation, according to a compromise proposal leaked to Reuters.
Lawmakers suspended talks Thursday after negotiations that lasted nearly 24 hours overnight failed to reach a consensus on how best to regulate the rapidly evolving technology.
Open source refers to the free and open sharing of software code, allowing anyone to contribute to updating it or solving bugs.
Prominent European companies active in the open source space include France’s Mistral and Germany’s Aleph Alpha, both of which had previously criticized European proposals to regulate the technology.
According to a document circulated among lawmakers Thursday morning, the AI law does not apply to free and open source licenses unless, for example, they are considered risky or used for purposes that are already prohibited.
France, Germany and Italy had previously called for generative AI models to be self-regulated, apparently in an effort to support local startups.
According to one source familiar with the negotiations, the exemption for the open source models built by Mistral and Aleph Alpha could be seen as a win for them. “However, the law has not yet been settled, so we cannot jump to conclusions,” they added.
Backed by Microsoft, OpenAI was also founded as an open source nonprofit before co-founder Sam Altman transitioned to a limited profit structure in 2019.
