EPIC Submits Feedback on the European Commission’s Proposal for Harmonized Rules on Artificial Intelligence

EPIC submitted comments identifying gaps and proposing privacy and fundamental rights-preserving updates to the European Commission's Proposal for Harmonized Rules on Artificial Intelligence (the Artificial Intelligence Act or "AIA"). The AIA is intended as a step forward in proactive regulation of AI system use. However, EPIC's comment describes how unaddressed privacy and human rights concerns may allow AI systems to be used in ways that cause serious harm to individuals interacting, knowingly or unknowingly, with those systems. EPIC recommends that the Commission (i) remove the broad exemptions on regulatory requirements for AI systems and expand prohibitions where necessary, (ii) mandate prior notification to individuals subject to AI system decision-making, (iii) fully ban emotion recognition and biometric categorization systems, and (iv) mandate review and approval of AI system conformity assessments by data protection authorities prior to use. EPIC advocates for algorithmic justice, transparency, and accountability, and recently submitted comments on the OECD Framework for Classifying AI Systems, recommending changes to more robustly address privacy concerns.