Meta, Google Criticize EU’s Stringent AI Regulations During Techarena Conference

Policy chiefs from US big techs Meta and Google say EU AI regulations are slowing down growth of the AI industry in Europe. The big techs spoke during the Techarena conference held in Sweden’s Stockholm capital, CNBC reported.

The big techs used this platform to raise concerns regarding the strict approach that the EU has taken towards technologies like machine learning and AI.
A Harmonization Problem
Google says that the biggest problem with the EU’s approach to AI regulation is that the EU AI Act was developed before the launch of ChatGPT. The EU’s executive body, the European Commission first introduced the Act in April, 2021 while OpenAI unveiled ChatGPT in November 2022.

“There is a way to use policy to create a better investment environment when it’s done in a way that promotes business. I think what’s difficult is when you are regulating on a time scale that doesn’t match the technology. I think what we need to do is both regulate to ensure that there is responsible application of technology, while also ensuring that the industry is thriving in all the right ways.” Dorothy Chou, Head of Public Policy at Google DeepMind said, making reference to the US Inflation Reduction Act that resulted in benefits like EV subsidies.

Last month, Google’s President for Global affairs, Kent Walker said the EU’s code of practice for general-purpose AI (GPAI) models was a step in the wrong direction. GPAI refers to systems such as the GPT family of large language models developed by OpenAI.

Early this month, Meta’s Chief Global Affairs Officer, Joel Kaplan said that the social media giant will not sign the code as it is currently. Kaplan said the provisions in the code surpass the requirements in the EU AI Act and that it imposes requirements that are unworkable and technically not feasible.

A Bit Fragmented

According to Meta’s public policy chief, besides being strict, AI rules in Europe are also a bit fragmented. All this delays the entry of innovative products to the EU.

“I think there is now broad consensus that European regulation around technology has its issues, and sometimes it’s too fragmented, like the GDPR, sometimes it goes too far, like the AI Act. But the net result of all of that is that products get delayed or get watered down and European citizens and consumers suffer,” Chris Yiu, Public Policy Director at Meta said.

Yiu showcased Meta’s newly launched Ray-Ban smart glasses at the tech event. The glasses use AI to describe images for people with visual impairment and translate languages.

“This is a profound and very human application of the technology, and it is slow to arrive in Europe because of the issues that we have around regulation,” Yiu said.

Meta introduced Ray-Ban Meta glasses with AI features to selected EU countries in November. This was after delays that the company attributed to the complicated regulatory system. Previously, the social media giant has raised concerns regarding its ability to comply with the GDPR and the European Union AI Act. The GDPR halted the introduction of Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses in Europe after the company used Facebook and Instagram user data to train its AI models.

Push for Lesser Regulation

In recent months, big techs have been upping tech industry response to EU policies and increasing lobby efforts to push for changes in some sections of the AI law.

The amplified voices of tech giants have emboldened Preside Donald Trump’s new administration. While attending the Paris AI Action Summit, US VP JD Vance raised the AI regulation issue, blasting the region for focusing too much on regulating the technology instead of embracing its growth potential.

Some venture capitalists have also raised concerns over the complex compliance requirements in the region, which they say burdens their portfolio companies. Antoine Moyroud of Lightspeed Venture Partners said that contrary to the US, the narrative in the EU appears to be more dramatic. Lightspeed has invested in French AI firm Mistral, which is touted as EU’s main competitor of OpenAI.