ITI Cautions Against Revision of EU Liability Rules for AI
BRUSSELS – Today, global trade association ITI submitted comments (opens in a new tab) to the European Commission’s consultation on the revision of EU liability rules to account for potential challenges posed by new technologies, including Artificial Intelligence (AI).
ITI’s comments highlight that more evidence is needed to demonstrate that the current Product Liability Directive (PLD) is not fit for purpose before engaging in a revision of the existing rules. ITI also recommends policymakers wait until the AI Act is finalised to avoid potential legal uncertainty and ensure that the concepts contained therein are fully crystallized and understood.
“ITI recognises the importance of achieving a liability regime that addresses potential challenges that may arise as a result of the digital transformation and from new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI),” ITI wrote in its comments. “However, it is too early at this stage to engage in a revision of the Product Liability Directive (PLD) to specifically account for the challenges posed by new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, as this work should be based on solid evidence of proven flaws and consumer harm in the current framework – evidence that has not been presented to date.
“We caution against proposals to include software and services in the scope of the PLD, as this would fail to take into account the specific characteristics of software, excessively spread liability across the software supply chain and potentially damage innovation,” ITI continued. “It is important to note that software and, in particular, AI are not a product by themselves, but are rather components of a product or a service, and as such should be treated.”
Read ITI’s full comments here (opens in a new tab).
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