Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
The European Commission announced in Brussels today that more than a hundred companies are the first to sign the EU AI Charter and its voluntary pledges.
The signatories include multinational companies and European small and medium-sized enterprises from diverse sectors, including ICT, healthcare, banking, automotive and aviation. The Charter supports voluntary commitments by industry to start implementing the principles of the AI ​​Act before its entry into force and promotes engagement between the EU AI Office and all relevant stakeholders, including industry, civil society and academia.
The EU AI Charter voluntary pledges call on participating companies to commit to at least three key actions:
An AI governance strategy to promote AI adoption in the organization and work towards future compliance with the AI ​​Act.
Mapping high-risk AI systems: identifying AI systems that are likely to be classified as high-risk under the AI ​​Act.
Promoting AI knowledge and awareness among employees, ensuring ethical and responsible AI development.
In addition to these core commitments, more than half of signatories have committed to additional commitments, including ensuring human oversight, mitigating risks, and transparently labeling certain types of AI-generated content, such as deepfakes. Companies are welcome to join the AI ​​Charter and commit to core and additional commitments at any time until the AI ​​Act is fully implemented.

Strengthening EU leadership in AI innovation
Alongside efforts to help companies implement the AI ​​Act in anticipation of the legal deadline, the Commission is taking action to boost EU innovation in AI. The AI ​​Factories initiative, set for 10 September 2024, will provide startups and industry with a one-stop shop for innovation and AI development, including data, talent, and computing power. The AI ​​Factories will also drive the development and validation of industrial and scientific applications of AI in key European sectors such as healthcare, energy, automotive, transport, defence, space, robotics, manufacturing, cleantech, and agriculture.

AI factories are a highlight of the AI ​​Innovation Package presented by the Commission in January 2024, alongside venture capital and equity support measures, the rollout of common European data spaces, the GenAI4EU initiative, and the AI ​​Grand Challenge, which gives startups financial support and access to EU supercomputers, among other measures. The Commission will also establish a European AI Research Council to exploit the potential of data, and an AI Application Strategy to promote new industrial uses of AI. The AI ​​Act entered into force on 1 August 2024. Some provisions of the AI ​​Act are already fully applicable. The AI ​​Act will become fully applicable two years after its entry into force, with some exceptions: prohibitions will enter into force after six months, governance rules and obligations for general-purpose AI models will become applicable after 12 months, and rules for AI systems embedded in regulated products will apply after 36 months.