Global Tech Association ITI Urges Policymakers to Take Balanced Approach to Liability Rules for AI, New Technologies
BRUSSELS – Today, global tech trade association ITI, the Information Technology Industry Council, (opens in a new tab) urged EU policymakers to take a balanced and proportionate approach as it develops liability rules for new technologies in its comments on the AI Liability Directive (AILD) (opens in a new tab) and the proposed revision of the Product Liability Directive (PLD) (opens in a new tab).
“The tech industry recognises the importance of achieving a liability regime that addresses potential challenges that may arise from new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), but the combined application of the two new regimes, together with the anticipated AI Act, may make the regulatory landscape for software and AI innovators in Europe rather complicated” said Guido Lobrano, ITI’s Director General for Europe. “It is thus crucial to ensure that liability rules are balanced and proportionate for all actors to effectively protect victims, without disincentivising innovation and affecting Europe’s competitiveness in technology.”
In its comments (opens in a new tab) on the PLD, ITI questions the inclusion of intangible elements like standalone software and AI in the definition of “product”. Intangible elements can be fixed remotely and do not physically act upon any person or property and should therefore not be subject to strict liability – a powerful tool which should only be used for a very limited number of cases. Lawmakers should also clarify the damages covered, address how the concept of defectiveness can apply to intangible elements and ensure that the adjustments to the burden of proof are proportionate.
In the comments (opens in a new tab) for the AILD, ITI calls for targeting the new rules to only high-risk AI use cases in line with the risk-based approach of the EU AI Act and for increasing the thresholds for the application of the rebuttable presumptions.
Read ITI’s PLD paper here (opens in a new tab), read ITI’s AILD paper here (opens in a new tab).
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