The ghost of AI governance past, present and future: AI governance in the European Union

Abstract

The received wisdom is that artificial intelligence (AI) is a competition between the US and China. In this chapter, the author will examine how the European Union (EU) fits into that mix and what it can offer as a ‘third way’ to govern AI. The chapter presents this by exploring the past, present and future of AI governance in the EU. Section 1 serves to explore and evidence the EU’s coherent and comprehensive approach to AI governance. In short, the EU ensures and encourages ethical, trustworthy and reliable technological development. This will cover a range of key documents and policy tools that lead to the most crucial effort of the EU to date: to regulate AI. Section 2 maps the EU’s drive towards digital sovereignty through the lens of regulation and infrastructure. This covers topics such as the trustworthiness of AI systems, cloud, compute and foreign direct investment. In Section 3, the chapter concludes by offering several considerations to achieve good AI governance in the EU.