Dispatch from Brussels: Updates on EU tech policy 

AI Act Compliance – Call for tenders: The EU AI Office will shortly be seeking external contractors to offer technical support for compliance monitoring, particularly in evaluating risks associated with general-purpose AI models at the EU level, as permitted by Articles 89, 92, and 93 of the AI Act. The tender, valued at €9,080,000, is divided into six distinct lots. The first five lots address specific systemic risks: 1) CBRN, 2) cyber threats, 3) loss of control, 4) harmful manipulation, and 5) sociotechnical risks. These lots include risk modelling workshops, the development of evaluation tools, the establishment of a reference procedure and reporting template for risk assessment, and continuous risk monitoring services. The sixth lot centres on an agentic evaluation interface, providing software and infrastructure to assess general-purpose AI across various benchmarks. You can find out more about this on the official tender page.

Simplification

Exempting 38,000 companies from EU laws: On Wednesday 21 May, The European Commission announced it would introduce a new "small mid-cap" category, exempting companies with up to 750 employees and €150M turnover from eight EU laws, including GDPR, and the Batteries Regulation. This aims to support growing firms, encompassing 38,000 regional economic players. The move is part of the EU's fourth Simplification Omnibus Package which aims to target administrative burdens. Exemptions also applied to the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence directive. The change was implemented through targeted amendments to existing laws.

Consultations on simplification legislation: As part of its broader simplification push and the many Omnibus packages that are coming out, the EU published a variety of consultations on 23 May. These consultations on upcoming pieces of legislation touch upon a wide range of issues from reporting requirememts to funding instruments. Some of the more relevant consultations are the following:

AI Liability Directive: The Directive which has the been the focus of much discussion over the past few weeks (as some in the European Parliament argue the EU Commission should walk back on its decision to withdraw the legislation from its 2025 work programme), has recently been discussed in the European Parliament’s Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO). The Committee adopted its opinion on the Directive, calling it “premature and unnecessary”. IMCO explained that the creation of a separate AI liability Directive is not justieified as the AI act and the recently revised Product Liability Directive are sufficient.

Data flows

Data Union Strategy: On 23 May, the EU Commission launched a public consultation on its upcoming “Data Union Strategy”. The strategy aums to ensure coherence between policies, infrastructures, and legal instruments on data. With this consultation (which will close on 18 July), the Commission hopes to gather views on the use of data in AI, on simplifying rules that apply to data, and on international data flows.

Single Market

The New Consumer Agenda – Digital Fairness: On 19 May, the EU Commission opened a public consultation on its upcoming "New Consumer Agenda 2025-2030". The agenda will cover topics ranging from promoting a “fair green and digital economy” and strengthening the “enforcement of consumer protection legislation”. Importantly the New Consumer Agenda will contain a list of measures to be taken in 2025-2030 on digital fairness.

Quantum

EU Quantum Strategy: On 19 May, the EU Commission launched a public “Call for Evidence” to help shape a new EU Quantum Strategy (expected Q3 2025). The initiative, part of efforts to boost EU competitiveness, invites input (deadline 3 June) on quantum research, computing and communication infrastructure, industrial deployment and skills development. With this upcoming Strategy, the EU will aim to align diverging national strategies and to make Europe “the world’s quantum continent”.

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