SUMMARY:

The European Parliament and Council reached a provisional agreement on 7th May, on the AI Omnibus, concluding negotiations that had previously stalled over the interaction between the AI Act and sectoral product legislation.

The European Parliament and the Council must now formally adopt the political agreement. Once adopted, the amended text will be published in the EU official journal and enter into force three days later.    

MORE INFORMATION:

The deal broadly maintains the Commission’s original simplification proposal while preserving the AI Act’s risk-based approach. The agreement postpones key obligations for high-risk AI systems to allow more time for technical standards and guidance to be finalised.

Rules for stand-alone high-risk systems, including employment, will now apply from 2 December 2027 (instead of 2 August 2026), while AI systems embedded in regulated products such as machinery, lifts and toys will apply from 2 August 2028, with watermarking obligations delayed until 2 December 2026.

A key compromise was found on the interaction between the AI Act and sectoral product safety rules, removing overlapping requirements for machinery products in certain cases while maintaining equivalent health and safety protections.

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